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Herd of Elephants Thunders Into Berkeley City Council Meeting
Well, not quite, but Code Pink Action Shows Power of Symbolic Action
Photos: Leon Kunstenaar
(Berkeley, March 11) - Activists and supporters brought a long "red line" with the names and ages of murdered Palestinian children to the meeting of the Berkeley City Council. The cloth red line stood for the ethical one that has been violated by the ongoing Israeli genocidal assault on Palestine and by its US enablers. It had a powerful impact.Wordlessly standing at the back of the room, no shouting, the action silently dominated the proceedings, making awkward the orderly discussions about parking meters, traffic patterns, debate procedures, etc.
In fact, Berkeley Mayor Adena Lishi came down from her exhaulted position, literately and symbolically, to inform the crowd that a special meeting would be held to address the activists' issues.
Organizer Cynthia Papermaster also distributed hamantaschen, food associated with the Jewish celebration of Purim, to show that the life affirming values of Judaism has nothing to do with the Zionists.
As both spectators and public officials munched on the cookies, there was a noticeable relaxation of the normally austere atmosphere of city government proceedings.
See all high resolution photos here.
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Great article!! One correction-- some of us did make comments to the Council after all.
Also, hamantaschen cookies symbolize the triangular hat worn by Haman, head honcho of Persian King Ahasuerus, who tried to persuade the King to kill all Jews. And it symbolizes liberation of the Jews from that edict of genocide. Queen Esther persuaded the King, her husband, (who didn't know she was Jewish!) to withdraw the command, thus saving Jews from genocide once again. I baked the hamantaschen to disarm and confuse the pro-Israel Council Members who tend to conflate Judaism with Zionism. I'm an anti-zionist Jew.
Also, hamantaschen cookies symbolize the triangular hat worn by Haman, head honcho of Persian King Ahasuerus, who tried to persuade the King to kill all Jews. And it symbolizes liberation of the Jews from that edict of genocide. Queen Esther persuaded the King, her husband, (who didn't know she was Jewish!) to withdraw the command, thus saving Jews from genocide once again. I baked the hamantaschen to disarm and confuse the pro-Israel Council Members who tend to conflate Judaism with Zionism. I'm an anti-zionist Jew.
For more information:
https://www.codepink.org
Thnx to Cynthia Papermaster and all who planned and participated in this Powerfully Peaceful Protest, and documented/reported. Fyi, Igor's urgent agenda item denouncing Islamophobia in general and, specifically, hate speech that targeted two local businesses owned by Muslims, was adopted without the amendment that those targeted business owners and their supporters had urged. We wanted the Resolution to also address the root cause of the hateful graffiti, expressions of support for Palestine and objections to genocide in Gaza etc. We're glad the Mayor will hold a special meeting. Here's hopin!
Ten of our group spoke to the Council, among them a member of Veterans for Peace. He carried a poster reading: "Remember the USS LIBERTY, attacked by Israel in June 1967. 34 American sailors killed. 173 wounded."
"I'm here to speak for 34 persons who cannot be here. They were crewmen of the USS Liberty, murdered by Israeli aircraft and torpedo boats," he told the Berkeley City Council.
Israel was not held accountable for the crime. The US government was complicit in covering it up, falsely calling it an "accident." But the records, the testimony of surviving crew members, and a huge amount of evidence, show that the Israeli attack on the American ship was deliberate.
"I'm here to speak for 34 persons who cannot be here. They were crewmen of the USS Liberty, murdered by Israeli aircraft and torpedo boats," he told the Berkeley City Council.
Israel was not held accountable for the crime. The US government was complicit in covering it up, falsely calling it an "accident." But the records, the testimony of surviving crew members, and a huge amount of evidence, show that the Israeli attack on the American ship was deliberate.
Great Headline!
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