In an effort to pressure Democratic presidential candidates to take a stand against Israel’s treatment of Palestinians, the youth-led progressive Jewish advocacy group IfNotNow has launched a new campaign arm with the goal of bringing Israel’s brutal occupation “to the forefront of the 2020 elections.”
As Politico reported on Saturday, IfNotNow is “training organizers in the early primary state of New Hampshire” and “plans to ‘bird-dog’ presidential candidates at public events to create viral moments and prod the Democratic Party leftward on the issue of Israel.”
“In addition to pushing the candidates to adopt more progressive positions on Israel,” according to Politico, “the group said it is hoping to draw public attention to the Democratic Party’s changing attitudes on the topic and clarify candidates’ stances on particular issues.”
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) appears to have been the first 2020 presidential candidate confronted by IfNotNow members in New Hampshire. The group said the senator expressed support for their campaign.
Our members in NH just asked @BernieSanders if he’s also an anti-Occupation Jew and looks like the answer is YES!
Learn more about us bringing the crisis of Israel’s military occupation over Palestinians to 2020 elections w/this exclusive from @Politico: https://t.co/JrGmtzDZE1 pic.twitter.com/IRhyLCMNgN
— IfNotNow
(@IfNotNowOrg) June 29, 2019
“IfNotNow believes that the time is ripe to put Israel at the center of the primary debate,” Politico reported. “Only 26 percent of Democrats view the government of Israel favorably, according to a 2019 survey by the Pew Research Center.”
In a series of tweets explaining the motivation behind the new campaign, IfNotNow organizer Emily Mayer said the group senses “an opportunity to break with the AIPAC-created status quo and push for a new politics within the Democratic Party.”
“A generation of young Jews are horrified watching what is being done in our name,” Mayer said. “The movement is there. It just needs to be activated. So let’s go.”
As life in Gaza becomes unlivable, the Knesset rules Palestinians in Israel second-class citizens, and Netanyahu moves to formally annex the WB, we have an opportunity to break with the AIPAC-created status quo and push for a new politics within the Democratic Party + in DC.
— Emily Mayer
Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), the first Palestinian-American ever elected to Congress, celebrated IfNotNow’s new pressure campaign in a statement to Politico.
“It is about time we realize the status quo is not working to bring peace to the region,” said Tlaib, who is planning to lead a congressional delegation to the occupied West Bank in August. “IfNotNow is one of the organizations that gives me hope that we are making progress towards a just and lasting peace.”
We’re not backing down in the face of Trump’s threats.
As Donald Trump is inaugurated a second time, independent media organizations are faced with urgent mandates: Tell the truth more loudly than ever before. Do that work even as our standard modes of distribution (such as social media platforms) are being manipulated and curtailed by forces of fascist repression and ruthless capitalism. Do that work even as journalism and journalists face targeted attacks, including from the government itself. And do that work in community, never forgetting that we’re not shouting into a faceless void – we’re reaching out to real people amid a life-threatening political climate.
Our task is formidable, and it requires us to ground ourselves in our principles, remind ourselves of our utility, dig in and commit.
As a dizzying number of corporate news organizations – either through need or greed – rush to implement new ways to further monetize their content, and others acquiesce to Trump’s wishes, now is a time for movement media-makers to double down on community-first models.
At Truthout, we are reaffirming our commitments on this front: We won’t run ads or have a paywall because we believe that everyone should have access to information, and that access should exist without barriers and free of distractions from craven corporate interests. We recognize the implications for democracy when information-seekers click a link only to find the article trapped behind a paywall or buried on a page with dozens of invasive ads. The laws of capitalism dictate an unending increase in monetization, and much of the media simply follows those laws. Truthout and many of our peers are dedicating ourselves to following other paths – a commitment which feels vital in a moment when corporations are evermore overtly embedded in government.
Over 80 percent of Truthout‘s funding comes from small individual donations from our community of readers, and the remaining 20 percent comes from a handful of social justice-oriented foundations. Over a third of our total budget is supported by recurring monthly donors, many of whom give because they want to help us keep Truthout barrier-free for everyone.
You can help by giving today. Whether you can make a small monthly donation or a larger gift, Truthout only works with your support.