By Kristin Peterson-Ishaq, The Burlington Free Press 3/24/2011
The popular movements for democracy and reform spreading throughout the Middle East have captured our attention and imagination.Suddenly we find ourselves questioning our government's support for authoritarian regimes and old canards about Arab and Muslim peoples, e.g., that they neither value nor want freedom. Thanks to global media, especially the valiant efforts of outlets such as Al Jazeera, we see firsthand that Middle Easterners are willing to stand up to bullets for their beliefs, having crossed the barrier of fear built by these old regimes.Likewise, it is past time for us to question our government's uncritical and increasingly isolated support for the Israeli government's actions today: occupying the West Bank, Gaza (in all practical respects), and East Jerusalem in defiance of international law; building settlements and draining resources from these same occupied lands; and building the Separation Wall, sited primarily on Palestinian land and illegal, according to the International Court of Justice.Let us join the international community, including more than 60 cities marking the seventh annual Israeli Apartheid Week, in calling on Israel's government to end these destructive practices and recognize the dignity and humanity of the Palestinian people. Let us all take part in working to create a new Middle East.
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