Jewish Voice for Peace Triangle NC

Out! Raleigh Pride and the LGBT Center of Raleigh have taken an action inspired by the Palestinian call to boycott, divest, and sanction those supporting Israeli apartheid.

The groups rejected sponsorships from companies benefiting from apartheid and genocide, including boycott target Siemens and pressure target Google, among others.

Our economic choices are impactful and important, and we’re inspired that Raleigh Pride rejected major sponsors benefitting from the genocide in Gaza.

At the same time, they highlighted the deep connections between Palestinian liberation and queer liberation: Out! Raleigh Pride encourages us to remember that “queer and trans Palestinians in Gaza are also undergoing the genocide inflicted by Israel.”

As an organization led by and consisting largely of queer and trans Jews, JVP Triangle is profoundly grateful for this leadership from Out! Raleigh Pride.

Raleigh may be the first major pride celebration in the country to become BDS compliant, and we look to peer groups around the U.S. and beyond to follow their lead.

This local BDS win did not happen overnight and was the result of significant organizing and relationship-building, led primarily by the NC State chapter of YDSA.

This commitment to BDS calls on all of us to recommit to Pride Month as a struggle for the collective liberation and dignity of humanity. Thank you to Out! Raleigh Pride and the LGBT Center of Raleigh. Folks interested in supporting their work can sign up to:

volunteer

donate

As our comrades at Raleigh Pride said:

There’s no pride in genocide!

(Raleigh, N.C., 1/2/2024) – Triangle NC Jewish Voice for Peace, reported today that it joined representatives of CAIR in NC and local Muslim community leaders in recent meetings with Congressman Wiley Nickel (D-NC) to discuss the ongoing conflict in the Middle East and demands for a ceasefire in Gaza.

In two back-to-back meetings, community leaders representing an interfaith, multi-racial coalition from across Congressional District NC-13 discussed with Congressman Nickel the possible avenues to seeking long-term peace in Gaza, including various forms of ceasefires. The groups that met with the congressman hope that such efforts will be an end to the continued genocide unleashed on civilians in Gaza by the Israeli military.

The first meeting included members from Triangle NC Jewish Voice for Peace and North Carolina Muslim Grassroots, while the second included representatives from CAIR in North Carolina and local Muslim religious leaders.

The four groups represent a rising majority of North Carolinians who are demanding a ceasefire in Gaza, want to hold Israel accountable for its war crimes and are calling for greater respect for Palestinian rights and an end to the misuse of taxpayers’ money in funding Israel’s war on Gaza.

CAIR in North Carolina spokesperson Al Rieder said:

“In the two meetings, our groups expressed to Congressman Nickel our criticism of the Israeli government’s genocidal actions, such as depriving Gaza’s population of food, water, electricity, and fuel, as well as the targeting and bombing of hospitals, schools, churches, and mosques.”

“It is incumbent on any official to take action against the preventable killings of innocent pregnant women, premature babies, intensive care patients, cancer patients, and civilians at large, which is currently occurring in Gaza due to Israel’s war crimes.”

All of the groups thanked Congressman Nickel for acknowledging the urgency of the situation in the Gaza Strip.

A recent text survey by Triangle NC Jewish Voice for Peace, sent to 13,000 voters located in Congressional District NC-02, found that 79 percent of respondents want their representative to sign the ceasefire resolution and 76 percent feel strongly about this demand. NC Muslim Grassroots is currently in the process of conducting similar polls in Congressional District NC-13 and across NC. More than 350 healthcare providers from Durham, Granville, and Orange counties, including nurses, doctors, and healthcare workers, signed a letter demanding a ceasefire. Nationally, more than two-thirds of Americans support a ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released in mid-November.

CAIR in North Carolina, and the local Muslim religious leaders of Congressional District NC-13, fully intend to follow up with Congressman Nickel in the new year regarding the proactive measures he promised to the groups during these meetings with him. His pledge reflects a genuine effort to address the complex issues at hand and seek accountability where necessary. All of the groups from these two meetings with Congressman Nickel, fully intend to hold him accountable in the new year for the assurances he made in said meetings.

This fall, unprecedented numbers of North Carolinians—union members and healthcare workers; mothers and queer community; Jews, Christians, and Muslims—have taken to the streets and the phones calling for an end to the genocide of Palestinians. Our people’s tireless advocacy has led members of Congress and US government staff alike to demand immediate ceasefire. Today, we thank NC-04 Representative Valerie Foushee for joining the majority of the constituents who elected her in calling for a permanent ceasefire. 

Rep. Foushee’s future voting record must reflect this commitment to a lasting ceasefire. We ask her to join fellow North Carolina Congresswoman Alma Adams in signing onto H. Res 786, and to oppose further unconditional military funding to Israel, used to support the oppression of Palestinian people. 

Rep. Foushee’s letter rightly calls for the bloodshed in Gaza to stop, for President Biden to use the full power of his administration to stop it, and for the release of hostages. As Jewish Voice for Peace-Triangle NC, we call for all hostages to be released, including Palestinian prisoners detained in Israeli prisons—many of whom are children held indefinitely without charges. These are the first steps to addressing the root causes of violence: Israeli military occupation and apartheid, and our own government’s role in funding this oppression. 

Safety for Israelis and Palestinians will be achieved through political solutions, not military ones. We look towards our other Triangle representatives, Rep. Deborah Ross and Rep. Wiley Nickel, to join in calling for a permanent and lasting ceasefire. Ceasefire is a vital first step to ensure all Palestinians and Israelis can live in safety and freedom. 

Jewish Voice for Peace – Triangle NC, 12/2/2023

As dozens of Carrboro residents spoke of their concern for the safety of children in Gaza, Carrboro Town Council calls on Congresswoman Valerie Foushee to sign a resolution calling for ceasefire. 

CARRBORO, NC (November 15, 2023) — On Tuesday evening, the Carrboro Town Council became the first municipality in North Carolina and one of the first in the country to call for a ceasefire in Israel/Palestine. 

As the Israeli siege of Gaza enters its fifth week, Carrboro Town Council resolved, “whereas the Federal Government holds immense diplomatic and appropriations powers to save Israeli and Palestinian lives… the Town of Carrboro calls upon our US Congressional delegation, both in the Senate and House of Representatives, to join us in (1) urging the Biden administration to immediately call for and facilitate de-escalation and a cease-fire to urgently end the current violence; and (2) calling upon the Biden administration to promptly send and facilitate the entry of humanitarian assistance -at the scale needed- into north and south Gaza.”

“I’m so proud of my neighbors in Carrboro who came to Town Council and spoke in support of a ceasefire. It was deeply moving as well as a beautiful expression of solidarity to hear neighbors speak about the many ways the liberation of Palestine intersects with their own identities as Jewish, disabled, or queer; as medical providers, veterans, or parents— the list goes on and on,” said Harry Hoy, a resident of Carrboro. “I’m grateful and proud that Carrboro did its part in making a ripple that will hopefully soon be a wave of support for a ceasefire.”

Representative Valerie Foushee, who represents Orange County in US Congress, has stated that Israel “must [defend itself] without violating humanitarian law by targeting innocent civilians as a part of any military campaign.” Yet she has thus far refused to sign on to HR 786, “Calling for an immediate deescalation and cease-fire in Israel and occupied Palestine.” As pressure is mounting across the country for the US to intervene, Representative Alma Adams of North Carolina’s 12th district has signed on to the resolution.   

Since October 7th, the Israeli military has bombed Gaza indiscriminately, targeting hospitals, homes, and places of worship while Gaza remains under total siege. This week, Palestinian doctors and nurses rushed to save patients on ventilators and babies in incubators as the Israeli military launched an assault on Al-Shifa Hospital. At this point, the Gaza Health Ministry has reported that over 11,300 Palestinians have been killed, and over 1 million Gazans have been displaced, with the average age of those killed just 5 years old. These numbers continue to rise as the Israeli ground offensive unfolds. Meanwhile, the United States continues to send military aid and troops to the area. 

Israel has openly stated an intention to commit mass atrocities and even genocide, with Prime Minister Netanyahu saying the Israeli offensive will “reverberate for generations.” President Biden has committed unwavering support for Israel’s war crimes.

Many of the Carrboro residents who showed up to speak in favor of ceasefire were members of Jewish Voice for Peace Triangle NC Chapter. The attendees wore T-shirts reading “Not in Our Name” and “Jews say Ceasefire Now!”

“Carrboro and the Triangle are home to a thriving Jewish community that is deeply rooted in North Carolina,” said Ace Turch, a resident of Carrboro. “We welcome babies into this community, observe Jewish holidays, and hold regular spiritual and social gatherings – all in the name of a Judaism that calls for justice for all people, in all lands. Right now, our community is calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.”

We as American Jews believe that never again means never again for anyone, and that includes Palestinians. Never again is this very moment.

Full text of the resolution passed:

Resolution calling for an immediate de-escalation and cease-fire in Israel and Gaza.

WHEREAS, all human life is precious, and the targeting of civilians, no matter their faith or ethnicity, is a violation of international humanitarian law;

WHEREAS, between October 7 and November 13, 2023, armed violence has claimed the lives of over 11,000 Palestinians and over 1,400 Israelis, including Americans, and wounded thousands more;

WHEREAS, hundreds of thousands of lives are at imminent risk if a cease-fire is not achieved and humanitarian aid is not delivered without delay; and

WHEREAS, the Federal Government holds immense diplomatic and appropriations powers to save Israeli and Palestinian lives;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Town of Carrboro calls upon our US Congressional delegation, both in the Senate and House of Representatives, to join us in –

(1) urging the Biden administration to immediately call for and facilitate de-escalation and a cease-fire to urgently end the current violence; and

(2) calling upon the Biden administration to promptly send and facilitate the entry of humanitarian assistance -at the scale needed- into north and south Gaza.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, the Town of Carrboro supports all of its Muslim and Jewish residents and condemns islamophobia and antisemitism.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Carrboro Town Council asks the Town Clerk that copies of this resolution be quickly forwarded to the President of the United States and Carrboro’s congressional delegation.

We extend our thanks to the Carrboro community and to town leaders for amplifying community voices!