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LCA Educational Forum: Labor Leaders from Groups representing the Education and Health Care sectors in Palestine and the U.S., discuss the challenges they face in demanding a Ceasefire in Gaza: A. Teaching and Learning Under Occupation – Sundos Hammad (West Bank Right to Education) – Fairouz Salameh (West Bank Right to Education) B. Unions in the Education Sector Calling for Ceasefire – Jackson Potter (VP of Chicago Teachers’ Union) – Corinna Mullin (Professor, John Jay College at CUNY) C. Local Solidarity with Healthcare Workers in Palestine – Rubab Islam (Alachua Healthcare Workers) – Ananda Ramirez (Alachua Healthcare Workers) D. Political Analysis – Angie Nixon (FL State Rep) – Michael Letwin (Labor for Palestine)

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Palestine: An Issue for Every Worker

LCA Educational Forum: Labor Leaders from Groups representing the Education and Health Care sectors in Palestine and the U.S., discuss the challenges they face in demanding a Ceasefire in Gaza: A. Teaching and Learning Under Occupation – Sundos Hammad (West Bank Right to Education) – Fairouz Salameh (West Bank Right to Education) B. Unions in the Education Sector Calling for Ceasefire – Jackson Potter (VP of Chicago Teachers’ Union) – Corinna Mullin (Professor, John Jay College at CUNY) C. Local Solidarity with Healthcare Workers in Palestine – Rubab Islam (Alachua Healthcare Workers) – Ananda Ramirez (Alachua Healthcare Workers) D. Political Analysis – Angie Nixon (FL State Rep) – Michael Letwin (Labor for Palestine)

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0:00every issue that affects uh

0:06Humanity H our belief that an injury to one is an injury to all is um very much

0:15an intrinsically part uh of our mindset we hope that you find our Forum

0:21to be helpful in increasing your understanding in the most important immediate issue facing Humanity today

0:33our we also hope that this forum will be useful to help you find ways to channel

0:39some of your energy in support the of the struggle uh for the Palestinian

0:44Liberation and towards peace in the Middle East we also realize that tonight’s

0:50Forum uh takes place just after Israel bombed people living in tents in Rafa

0:59after they told them that it will be a safe area uh killing and burning uh to

1:04death men women and children leaving others with the living hell of burns but no adequate hospital to go they have

1:12bumped most of the hospitals in the in the area um this evening ER hundreds demonstrated

1:20in downtown follower Dale in solidarity with the people of Gaza that have been

1:25secluded in Rafa uh other protests are taking place in Gainesville and

1:31Pensacola and tomorrow in Tampa that we know of we dedicate this forum to those

1:38who have given their lives to the fight for Liberation and peace Justice and

1:43ceasefire now please uh enjoy the

1:49Forum learn from The Forum and uh will let’s work together uh to make uh a

1:58better world the world with peace and justice for all and now I’m going to pass the the

2:06Batton to the other co-share uh nucleus

2:14Shelton from um by the way I neglected to say that I

2:20am a former labor Community organizer uh 40 years of experience um and my last uh

2:28uh job uh in the labor movement was uh with um the Pennsylvania State Education

2:35Association which is now the which is part of the National Education Association but I also work let’s pass

2:42this to nucleus also I work with LC aciu and

2:48also work with um um the communication workers of America no good evening

2:55everyone brothers and sisters it’s great to be on this call with you all I’d like to welcome you you to this event a

3:01Palestine an issue for every worker as mentioned my name is nucleus Shelton I

3:07so proudly serve as the co-chair for the labor Community Alliance of South Florida and today we’re going to be

3:13talking about the pressing issues that are taking place and developing uh in Palestine in the

3:20Middle East and it’s a topic that resonates deeply within the fabric of our Global Community but I want to be

3:26very clear when I say this the ongoing genocide in Palestine sanctioned by the

3:32Israeli government is not just a local tragedy but a global call to action

3:37against oppression with each passing day it echoes the struggles of oppressed

3:42people worldwide demanding our attention empathy and action each life loss each

3:50family torn apart resonates with the collective pain of those fighting for justice everywhere it’s a sobering

3:57reminder of the urgent need for solid ity and the unwavering commitment to

4:02ending all forms of Injustice and brutality so as we embark on this

4:07discussion I encourage everyone to pay attention to our speakers and because we

4:14have a very diverse Community with a wealth of knowledge and perspectives that can help us guide us towards

4:21deepening our understanding of this topic and with that I would like to pass it to Candice who will be giving us the

4:28rules of engage engagement for tonight’s for Candace you have the

4:36floor nucleas and Carol there it is right there is our

4:42community guidelines just uh we just always go over these to make sure that we’re all on the same page just Please

4:50be aware if you’re a speaker that there’s going to be a timer and a prompt U muting the microphones will be done so

4:58that it every body has a chance to speak and we get everything in by 8:30 so you

5:05know that’s going to be a little tricky um prioritize please our relationships

5:10we’re here to bridge between people across continents across faith and this

5:17is we want to respect everybody so we can disagree on topics perhaps but we’re

5:22always going to respect each other as people put our relationships first please ask concise questions when you

5:30put them in the chat and we will pick up as many questions as we have time to um

5:35if they’re worded concisely that we know exactly what you want that’s going to make it easier for us to Target

5:41questions uh and I think I’ve already done the polite communication part we’re all adults and we’re all here because we

5:48care about this topic and the people involved so we’re going to show each other that caring attitude and feel free

5:57to join the chat the most of you already have we have people from all over the

6:02place and we’re so happy to have every single one of you and especially our speakers we have some people that are

6:10it’s in the middle of the night for them so thank you very much for being here and that’s all I have to say enjoy this

6:16evening and I hope we all learn

6:27some okay well first first speakers that we have tonight are the most honored

6:32speakers that we have and it’s in the first section on teaching and learning under

6:38occupation the first speakers are sundus ahammad and she is the coordinator of

6:44the right to education campaign at brette University in Palestine and she

6:49is also a human rights Advocate and she’ll be covering education under settler Colonial colonialism she’ll be

6:56joined also by fos uh Salam s and she’s also a member of the uh right to

7:03education campaign and she’ll be reflecting on her own experience as a former student prisoner uh but uh first

7:10we’d like to call on sundas hammad and as um Hannah’s pointed out it’s like 2

7:17am in uh on the West Bank in Palestine so uh take it away

7:26sundos okay thank you Jeff uh hello everyone I hope you are doing great thank you for having us today in this

7:33great platform um so um first of all I would start my

7:41presentation with honoring our martys in Gazza um and after what we saw

7:48yesterday the urge of such platforms to speak about Aza in every level um

7:55against oppression and against the genocide is really important so thank you today for having us and for having

8:02the time to um to share and applify the voices of Palestinians and and Gaz and

8:10students so today um as the Israeli colonialism unfolds in uh its genocidal

8:17war in Gaza uh after over more than 230 days of Relentless aggression more than

8:25two million Palestinians are denied their basic rights of existence and life

8:30amidst this brutality education becomes a casuality with 19 higher education

8:37institutions in Gazza left Paralyzed by bombings claiming the lives of countless

8:43professors and students meanwhile in the West Bank the

8:48Spectre of occupation looms large forcing 34 higher education institutions

8:54to buot to distance learning for months to due to escalating violations and

9:01settler violence and to restriction of movements that takes us or to a

9:08fundamental question to ask ourselves why why education amidst all of this is

9:14targeted systematically so we see it as in the

9:20context of Israeli settler colonialism in Palestine ignorance serves as a potent Ally of settler colonialism

9:27enabling the imposition of Domin narratives and preservation of the

9:33status quo while education emerges as the Cornerstone of resistance resilience

9:40IND indigenous empowerment and Liberation so

9:47um my Campaign which I work in is um has emerged in

9:531988 in the first Uprising in Palestine at that time education was considered

9:59illegal by the Israeli occupation all schools and universities were closed by

10:05military orders from the occupation at that time including beer8 University which was closed for 51 consecutive

10:13months we couldn’t go to school we were prevented from holding any books because

10:20that could be a threaten to be in in the Israeli jails so this campaign has

10:25emerged among at that time in order to defend the right to education for Palestinians

10:31and to build an international network of solidarity with uh uh pressure groups

10:40unions um uh with uh students activists um with um everyone who cares

10:48about the right to education for Palestinians and yet today after more than 35 years we

10:57still uh uh function and we still uh document the violations towards the

11:03right to education and this moment of History we

11:10are witnessing something else about education it’s it’s not like the

11:15systematic violation towards education system anymore it’s like a total

11:22analization of the whole system of Education as you as we like see in Gaza

11:28like all un I ities have been bombed more than 100 professor and Scholar has

11:34been killed targeted with their own families hundreds of of thousands have H

11:40have been lost their education thousands of students have been killed as well uh schools and

11:47universities were used as as um uh settler

11:53and as like for the soldiers um in this war so it’s it’s

11:59really bad to speak about about the hierarchy of higher education

12:07among the the priorities because as I said at the start like we we can’t even

12:14have the right to live rather to speak about

12:20education I I wanted to say that this what is happening today in Gaza has been

12:27coined uh by a Prof Professor a Palestinian Professor actually from Oxford called karma nail which she in n

12:36in 2009 at the first assault on Gaza coined this uh uh um term scolastici

12:43side to refer to the systematic destruction of higher education uh within the war in the

12:51context of Israeli settler colonialism today we are witnessing scolastici side

12:57on a different level many scholars today are trying to um uh

13:03redefine what scolastici side means because it it’s no longer the systematic

13:09destruction as I said it has different uh levels and different faces Unfortunately

13:16today that’s time thank

13:22you do I do I have one minute to conclude or

13:29next next speaker okay thank you

13:37yeah for and the next speaker is Fu Salama uh who has just joined us who’s a

13:45student and a part of the campaign for the right to education as well and we’ll

13:50talk about her experience as a student prisoner and they’ll continue sundus comments uh later during the other

13:58section of the every speaker will have two more minutes to speak uh and frankly we will give

14:05extra consideration to the people from Palestine um I think that that’s the

14:10only appropriate thing to do so F hi everybody I hope you are good thank

14:17you very much for hosting us today and and I will start now to present because

14:22the time um I need just to continue about what sundus sundus talk about and

14:28how the Israeli security system for targeting the student in Palestine and

14:34their education uh but to be um I need to start in my personal experience then I

14:41will talk about how the the several access the Israeli targeting the student

14:47to be just um in good birth H as for my personal experience I was arrested in

14:54the second month of the war during the final stage of my education which was

15:00which was preparing my graduation thesis uh we as a Palestinian are trated trated

15:07dur during investigation in quotation because I was under investigation investigation when I was arrested H as a

15:14security risk the Israeli security system and as a colonial colonial state

15:20dealing with us as a Palestinian as a security risk and we are created uh with

15:25our educational bth and and the promise from the the Israeli officer uh of not

15:31being able to continue our education completing uh completing a subsequent

15:36stage such as being denied denied to travel to complete our education for

15:42example um master degree or doctoral degree degree and dealing with and the

15:49Israeli security system dealing with the subject and the topic that we are study as a cons are considering as a security

15:57risk that prevent us from thinking about this this subject and study this subject

16:03and research on on the field for example when um when they arrested me H in in

16:09the section of my thesis I was studying the checkpoints and barriers it’s just a small section in the whole topic so they

16:17just dealing with this this section as a aate the their uh their state H and it’s

16:25not allowed to us to think about this uh this this reality we live inside it as a

16:31social science or as a student in in education Beth here and and here I would

16:37like to point out of the historical relationship of the colonial colonialism to the immigrants of the Z Israel isra

16:45as a product of the continu continuation continuation of the classic state of

16:50colonialism which enjoyed the support of the Western Country and give give Israel

16:55the legility to kill Palestinian uh and as as like what happening in Gaza

17:02currently most recently what’s happening in ra yesterday and today and daily

17:07killing in the West in the West Bank Israeli continue their their killing act

17:15as a daily acting before the war before the T AA battle war and during this uh

17:23this battle as a normal act because they H they have the support of the Western Country and the most important of which

17:30the American government H it’s just continuous Financial supporting and supplying their their women and

17:37providing the space of uh space for their research uh and production of

17:43academic re give give him a space to production of academic research to develop the ween to kill us as a

17:49Palestinian at the time when we are as a Palestinian are prevented from completing our education it just the the

17:56the um briefly uh my experience and because the time I have one minute I

18:02need to point another important acting about how the Israeli targeting the

18:08student represented through several axxes as in the following uh point one

18:13direct direct killing through the martydom of student such as the last student in the factory of physical

18:19education isar Sai from gazon camp and before iser they kill bad and jaad Andi

18:26and the recently graduate student Adan he was killed in inside the Israeli

18:33fascist prison prison to a continuous campaign of

18:38arresting it was before the current war and it’s continuous through this this war more inance manner uh with the

18:46number of detent student increasing to more to more than 100 male and female student like laned and bar the female

18:56student was arrested in in the education path in the university and more more

19:02student like the president of the student council in be University and all

19:07the uh student active in the student movement in beet University and in the all University in West Bank andah

19:14University Al alz University and abis University three The persuation

19:20Continuous after freedom from the prison H which continuous someon summon and

19:26rearrested some of student such as the student riyat Khalifa riyat Khalifa was

19:32arrested a student in be University who was arrested before the war and he was released during this war yesterday he

19:39was sumed uh to meet the Israeli directed officer in the in his region

19:45kufur nma Village um and in in this day until this date I talk to you uh he was

19:53not released and his mother is still waiting for him to return to the to her home and his mother is very sick and he

20:00she does not see her son enough because he was arrested before the war and during the war the re they the Israeli

20:08security system rearrest him because it’s a norm incitation they think the

20:14arrested casing a normal situation to dealing with us as a Palestinian but it’s a tool how they just um uh facing

20:23us to not to not talk to not acting to not facing their colon system to to

20:30liberity our our land for I’m sorry it’s time

20:37okay okay will continue thank you for for both you and for sundos there’ll be

20:43uh another two minutes that there’ll also be a question and answer period but for sundos uh if you’re still there you

20:50come back on camera um there we give you another uh minute right now because you

20:57were cut off a little bit short there if you would like to complete your thought uh you can complete your thought right

21:02now I know you’re probably was I that was last talking but if you can complete

21:08your thought now and then also you have more time later thank you so much Jeff um so uh I just want to to emphasize

21:16what Fus has mentioned that criminalizing the student movement since uh um it’s started in the 70s until

21:24today by um raiding campuses and and arresting students more than 150

21:31students from beer University alone today are in the Israeli prisons among

21:36them for uh students also like how the Israeli occupation is trying to isolate

21:42the higher education in Palestine uh along with um um like

21:48trying to change the narrative um by uh forcing Collective

21:54punishment on Palestinians on different levels on the social media on the ground

22:00and anyone of the Palestinian allies or any ones who’s trying to have solidarity

22:05with Palestinians also get punished if they want to come to Palestine so yeah I

22:11will try to uh sum it up also in in the Q&A thank you so much Jeff thank you

22:18thank you very much thank you the next section that we’re going to be talking about is also uh having representatives

22:25from the unions in the education sector here in the United States and we were

22:30going to have one of our main speakers uh in this section was Natalie hery who is the vice president of US UF the

22:38education Union in San Francisco representing 6,500 workers there but she is sick today and she’s not able to

22:44participate but we do have with us Jackson Potter who is the vice president of the Chicago Teachers Union aft who’s

22:53been since 2022 as a high school student in 1995 he reled out for Equitable

22:59school funding he became a teacher after that and since then uh he’s become a

23:05leader in the union and known not just in Chicago but around the country as someone who’s for uniting labor and

23:11Community interests at the bargaining table J and in the streets uh to create dog

23:19for the people uh so if everybody could go on mute so we can hear Jackson Potter

23:24because he has a great deal to say a great deal to say at the

23:39Jeff I I think you went off on mute there for the M part I don’t know if you want

23:44to okay um I think maybe we’re trying to mute everybody so so yeah I’m so sorry

23:51that wasn’t me I apologize okay so uh let me just recapture this uh this

23:58introdu Jackson Potter is the vice president of the Chicago Teachers Union has been vice president since

24:042022 as a high school student in 1995 he led a walk out uh for Equitable funding

24:10for uh uh School Equitable school funding he became a teacher and then a

24:15leader of the union and a leader known in Chicago and know known nationally for

24:21uniting um uh labor and Community interest and labor and Community

24:26interest not only at the bargaining table but in the streets and building community and and labor power um so

24:34Jackson uh can you tell us what your what your opinions are of the issues

24:39here at this uh Forum yeah yeah of course I’m happy to how much time like

24:44just a few take a couple minutes if you have five minutes here and then there are two minutes later after all the

24:50speakers have done so you’ll be able to comment on everything you’ve heard at that point another section for questions

24:56and answers great yeah so uh again I’m vice president at the Chicago Teachers

25:01Union and our members took uh a position to advocate for ceasefire in our

25:08November early November house meeting where we have representativ some schools all over the city and it was really

25:15critical for you know our um most democratic governing body to take that

25:22position because of the harm um being imposed by our government with our

25:28taxpayer dollars against children and civilians in Gaza and um as Educators it

25:37it would be morally bankrupt of us to sit by idly and look the other way uh

25:42during this critical moment and we had a good amount of debate internally and um

25:49we prepared for that moment because we know that APAC um and other you know

25:56Zionist organizations were mobilized and as a Jewish labor leader I had a specific responsibility to mobilize

26:03other Progressive Jews in my union along with uh Muslims and we came together to

26:11make the case and really you know discuss the ways in which human rights were being violated and we wouldn’t

26:18stand for our students to be treated this way um you know there’s no way we could allow our government to do it to

26:24other children in Gaza on the West Bank so so that was kind of the motivation

26:30but it then grew to us being able to Advocate after we took that position

26:36overwhelmingly I’d say you know it was about 95% of our Democratic body taking

26:42that choice um it enabled us to band together with other local labor leaders like the United Electrical Workers UAW

26:49national nurses and call for a ceasefire that helped Propel um Chicago becoming

26:56the largest city to take that position uh with our mayor who’s also a teacher

27:01making the deciding tiebreaking vote um you know none of this comes

27:08without a lot of pressure we’ve been threatened legislatively um you know that because

27:14of our position you know there will be less funding for schools or less democracy for schools or our positions

27:22about privatization would be opposed so you know these kind of united front

27:28efforts really need to be taken with others uh I would highly recommend um

27:34you know doing the kind of work that’s necessary to bring members along and educate and have you know Ed uh

27:41opportunities for people to learn more so we’ve held forums where Palestinian

27:47voices you know on the ground can share just like we’re doing tonight you know

27:52some of the realities and what are the consequences of US foreign policy um on

27:58so many people suffering this Onslaught from the Netanyahu regime but also

28:03giving more of a historical context that it’s not as if this is the first time Israel has bombed hospitals and

28:09universities or refugee camps uh that this is an ongoing policy that’s decades

28:15in the making and so that kind of education has been important uh because

28:21you know the attacks will continue as um you know Zionist forces more

28:26mainstream kind of corporate Democratic forces feel that movements are starting

28:32to really demonstrate um how inhumane our policy is and uh they’re pushing

28:40back and so I fully expect as we pursue divestment efforts whether it’s through

28:45Pension funds or at the University level um you know those kinds of threats will

28:50continue and so building broad unified coalitions that are allowing us to educate people in a popular way to kind

28:58increase solidarity has been critical for our struggle

29:09here thank you Jackson I know that that sort of naturally naturally leads into

29:15our presentation at the higher education level with Karina Mullen Karina Mullen is a professor at John J College in cuni

29:23the uh City University of New York and she’s an elected delegate to the professional staff Congress uh which is

29:29an aft affiliate uh the union that represents 30,000 faculty and staff at

29:34the City University of New York she’s been an active uh participant in the demonstrations and actions in New York

29:41City around Palestine and Gaza and she’s very focused on pensions investment and

29:46other issues like that she also has a history of teaching for five years in uh in Morocco so uh Karina would you like

29:54to make your comments yes yes thank thank you Jeff actually it was Tunisia where I taught

30:00but North Africa thank you and um I just want to say thank you so much to the organizers of this panel for having

30:07invited me to join and also to these amazing my amazing co-panelist for your

30:13really powerful presentations and I’ve learned so much already um I uh there

30:18there are a lot of reasons as have already been discussed um to be horrified at the current moment by the

30:24current moment most importantly the brutal genocide un on the Palestinian people part of an over Century old

30:31history of imperialist back violence and dispossession and 75 years of settler

30:37colonialism the horrific scenes out of Rafa as many have already described over the last 24 hours have reminded us of

30:44how Colonial and imperialist violence um respect no ethical or moral boundaries

30:50and for those of us organizing and higher education spaces we’re specific we’re specifically outraged by you know

30:57what son has talked about is the scolastici side every single University

31:02in Aza has been uh destroyed um by this genocide um but also the um what fyuse

31:11covered is the criminalization and repression of uh Palestinian students and um academic workers um and and you

31:19know it reminds us that we can’t be free here we can’t talk about academic freedom here we can’t talk about our

31:24rights um you know as academic workers here as long as our uh Union siblings as

31:31our as our as Palestinian students uh as Palestinian our Palestinian colleagues

31:37are being killed and criminalized and incarcerated um but there are also a couple of reasons to be hopeful most

31:44importantly the powerful resistance and steadfastness of the Palestinian people really a mo you

31:50know constant source of inspiration for all of us here in the belly of the Beast standing up to one of the most powerful

31:57set Colonial militaries in the world backed by the most powerful one the US

32:02secondly the solidarity um uh the growing Palestine solidarity movement in this country gives um all of us uh

32:09Reason for Hope and that includes the growing student movement the student intifa here in the US the encampment

32:15movement um many of us have been involved in I myself have been involved in the cuni um encampment at ccny and

32:23and this has revealed this movement has revealed how entangled our universities here in the US are with Zionism settler

32:30colonialism and imperialism and how they profit off of these systems of Oppression and dispossession and and the

32:36students have really made this clear their their political and moral Clarity around these issues has been the reason

32:42that the state and our University administrations have been um you know have have repressed them and with the

32:48violence um that we have seen in these last few months um also the growing labor movement against the genocide and

32:55ins solidarity with Palestinian Liberation here and across the globe another reason for Hope and I just want

33:00to say a few words about the mutual relationship between the Trade union movement and the student intifa and how

33:06they’re propelling each other forward um the student movement is really reinvigorating um the social justice and

33:13anti-racist oriented wing of Trade union movements and we know there’s always been this division in our Trade union

33:19movement between the kind of um uh bread and butter business unionism and also

33:25unionism based in racism you know the racism of our unions and and their history of support for colonialism and

33:32imperialism and Z Zionism um and the more radical on the other hand radical

33:39social justice anti-racist um uh Trade Union uh uh

33:44model as well and and I think the student movement is really helping to reinvigorate um that um uh brand of of

33:50trade unionism um and I just will say a few words about my own experience at uh cuni in the encampment student en but

33:58also my um which uh uh has intersected with my work as a um a delegate in my

34:05union PC cuni which is a local of the AFT um as anyone who has participated in

34:11these Camp encampments can attest they have been beautiful spaces um full of love care solidarity spaces of radical

34:19pedagogy and learning a place where people came together uh come together to share experiences of Oppression and

34:25Joint struggles for Liberation so really pushing that intersectionality that has also been a feature of the um the best

34:33of our Trade union movement um cuni is a largely workingclass people of color University our University that is

34:40embedded in communities that face issues of underfunding racist gentrification violent policing and houselessness the

34:47um encampment really focused on um um ending all of these uh systems of of

34:52Oppression and um exclusion and in making connections between palestin

34:58Liberation and these um struggles and I just want to end by saying I realize I’m out of time um that you know um

35:05essentially in our Union we um uh the student movement pushed us to consider

35:11for the first time a BDS resolution it wouldn’t have been possible without the student movement it didn’t pass

35:17unfortunately in the end and this really makes us reflect on the issue of the question of solidarity um I think

35:23Lorenzo started by saying you know um an attack on one is an attack on all and that’s at the that’s at the heart of the

35:29Trade union movement um we still have a ways to go um even in a a social justice

35:34Union like my own PSC cuni um but the the student movement is really pushing us to think about in new ways how we can

35:41get there and you know some of that might entail um new leadership and um

35:46we’re even talking now about a anti-racist caucus and how we um can really stand in solidarity with our

35:53workingclass students and also with the Palestinian Liberation struggle thank you

35:58thank you thank you and thank you for recognizing the time and so now we’re

36:03going to be moving to the local solidarity with uh uh healthcare workers on on

36:09Palestine and that’s an important section here we’re going to be uh talking to uh first with rubab Islam who

36:16is a member of the alacha County healthcare workers for Gaza and a Psychiatry resent resident at the

36:22University of Florida College of Medicine we’re very honored to have her here with us tonight

36:28and uh RAB I know I saw you here hi hi there you

36:34are so take it thanks so much for having me um

36:41thanks to all the speakers who’ve talked so far um so just a few things we wanted

36:46to talk about I know we were sent over some some kind of talking points um so

36:51just talking to speaking to a couple of those and I’ll let um my other colleague

36:56handle some of them um you know as far as reactions to um

37:03what’s been going on from workers at shans doctors nurses and other staff um

37:10you know there was curiosity about how they express solidarity and ask what they can do in support um to be honest

37:18there UF as a university-wide institution has has been staunchly in

37:24support of Israel and has sends fre reminder emails if you’re in the UF system at all frequent reminder emails

37:31of that stance um so that can be a little disheartening at times in the

37:38medical system at the hospitals at the clinics it doesn’t come up at all which

37:44um has been um it has felt odd because it is a health care issue it’s a health

37:50care crisis that’s going on over there so you know whenever there’s even talks like ethical talks um talks from Grand s

37:58about Ukraine and the crisis that’s going on there it comes up very easily and naturally but people seem to not

38:04want to touch this topic at all so there hasn’t been a great deal of support um

38:10from the hospitals as far as that goes I think on an individual basis if you talk to certain individuals as time has gone

38:17on uh more and more people recognize at this point that it is a purely a a even

38:22just from a purely humanitarian crisis perspective and an individual level more more people do um seem to show

38:30support for a ceasefire at the very least which is one of the efforts that healthcare workers for Gaza has been um

38:39has been taking on we’ve been going to the Commissioners and really pushing for a ceasefire resolution in alatua County

38:45it’s been one of our main goals so with time um more and more healthcare workers

38:52uh in the community have been signing on to that effort um but overall um it’s been very

39:00almost like Hush Hush at the hospitals like nobody wants to talk about it nobody really wants to be there is that

39:05fear um at when things were first going on you were seeing like residents and doctors sort of get fired over posting

39:12certain things on social media that were very purposefully misconstrued um as far as with you know

39:19the healthcare workers for Gaza I got involved um just at the beginning of this year um just you know they were

39:26putting on some events and I heard about the seeds fire resolution um and you know it really

39:32there the organization you know really brings into question like the identification of healthcare workers um

39:41and how we are all part of this system that is underfunded and you know the you know we

39:47were pointing out that um we’re underfunded understaffed here and all the money that’s going towards the bombs

39:53and that are currently being dropped in Palestine and um we wanted to talk about

39:58the connection that we see there um really resource allocation uh is

40:04something that we really see heavily in that it’s sort of this frustration that

40:10is growing that you see our health care System every day you see it’s almost like collapsing there’s just not enough

40:15resources and it’s it’s frustrating to see that money that taxpayer dollars

40:22that should be going towards our own health care here is instead going towards destroying lives overseas I

40:28think um there has been growing frustration over like a vicious cycle as well as people’s mental health and

40:36physical health too worsens over here from even witnessing the genocide um

40:42there is simply not enough space um for for supporting or caring for people here

40:49um and it’s on top of that for healthcare workers to feel like they

40:56don’t have really have free speech or that they could be excluded from the healthare system if they try to speak up

41:03about this um that’s that seems like a

41:09it seems like it’s too interconnected um that it no longer serves the purpose of of treating for people who are sick um

41:16so that has been it’s been pretty striking um you know and so for that

41:22reason we’ve continued to just sort of really want to get support for our ceasefire resolution um we we very much

41:32support some of the student encampments that have been going on or our Liberation Zone at the University of Florida um our group has sort of been

41:39trying to provide what we can for them um but even outside of the University affiliation we just are trying to go

41:45directly to the county to support a ceasefire um one thing that are we our

41:51group um we talked with Commissioners about and what we wanted to kind of bring up is um from speaking with that

41:57and pushing with them one thing we did uh achieve was um elat County actually divesting from all corporations after we

42:04went to a meeting and pointed out that the county was profiting from um from investments in Lockheed

42:12Martin and caterpillar and after bringing that up the Commissioners actually U met and um are planning to

42:20move forward with divesting from all corporate Investments um so those are some of the

42:25things our group has been focused on thanks so much for your time thank you

42:31that’s a big win thank you very much okay next up we have Ananda Ramirez the

42:38co-founder of the Elo County healthcare workers for Gaza and medical assistant and the Prem and a Premed

42:45student uh so Ananda hi can everyone see me I think it

42:53might be weird hi my name’s Ananda um hopefully you guys can hear me I am

43:00one of the co-founders of ala County um healthcare workers for gasa um I am a

43:06healthcare worker thankfully um although I did start off as just a Premed student at the University of Florida I just

43:11recently graduated and um I’ve worked as an MA for the past three years just

43:17because I’m trying to get to medical school and I’m currently working In Obstetrics in Gynecology um and just to kind of just

43:24bounce off what Dr rubab has been going about um our group thankfully it is a huge win

43:30for us I think um the Commissioners just recently stated and actually voted to

43:35diverse from all corporations rather than um like specific ones like loed Martin and caterpillar and we just

43:43wanted to bring this up because in the State of Florida there is like anti-bds laws and this is I think was one of the

43:50ways that the Commissioners were thinking of going around that by just divesting and looking over all corporations that they’re currently um

43:57like invested in rather than specific ones that we like of course have been asking for them to divest from um it’s

44:04been a very big struggle trying to get the ceasefire resolution passed through the Commissioners um so this was a very big

44:12win of course we’re still going to try to do a ceasefire resolution um as we have seen I believe in

44:19Dural they passed the ceasefire resolution there so that was really big

44:25and so hopefully our County will be following suits soon but for right now I think the main focus is just them

44:31divesting from corporations which we think is really a big priority right now um and if there’s like any healthcare

44:37workers or anyone knows any healthcare workers that are interested in getting involved Although our group is just

44:42located like Northern Florida Florida right now like El lat County we are thinking about starting a like Florida

44:48based healthare workers group so that we can get more healthare workers involved and potentially do um just more events

44:57um one thing we did have one of the doctors that’s involved with our um group he did do a um volunteer trip over

45:05to gusa and um we do have a video that we can share as well regarding just his

45:11report back and the experience that he had while he was actively involved in helping the citizens of Palestine and

45:19gusa oh it looks like they took back the resolution in Dural so unfortunately

45:24that’s not a win anymore um but we hope to eventually pass that but for now we

45:30can celebrate the investment when um otherwise I did want to like

45:35briefly talk just a little more regarding like the connection of why healthcare workers should be involved in

45:41caring about what’s going on overseas um I feel as though although I’m not a med

45:47student yet nor a resident or doctor um one thing that you have to consider when you are looking into getting into

45:53Healthcare is the fact that you have to have empathy and compassion for everyone regardless of where you’re located um

45:59it’s been like um Dr rubab said very hush hush um I’ve found it very difficult to find anyone that’s really

46:06been as like I wouldn’t say interested but as involved as I have been with the

46:11Palestinian conflict um even with the Sudan conflict like um just conflicts everywhere where humanitarian atrocities

46:18are occurring um so the like Foundation of this group was because we all felt

46:24very isolated and we wanted to create a space where we can have doctors go to do

46:29voluntary missions and fund raise for organizations and things like that so we feel like we’re actively doing a part in

46:36trying to help as much as we can from where we’re at um and like again why healthcare

46:43workers should be caring about this is because you take an oath to care about

46:48people um we should be empathetic towards what’s going on we should care about what the

46:54humanitarian catastrophes are happening just what we witnessed I think it was

46:59yesterday in Rafa um has been something I cannot put into words um so I just

47:07feel as though the main connection that we should see is our own Health Care system is collapsing and this wouldn’t

47:14be happening if the US was not so invested in their colonial projects overseas if our tax dollars were going

47:21towards funding our Healthcare System here maybe we wouldn’t have such TIR

47:27residents maybe we wouldn’t have such burn out doctors maybe we wouldn’t have such burnt out nurses Mas just everyone

47:34involved in a healthc care space um where everyone feels very strained and overworked where patients feel like they

47:40have to wait months to be seen by Specialists or where they feel like they see doctors and the doctors are just not

47:46interested and it could just be the doctors are burnt out there’s so many things that go into how our Health Care

47:53system is right now that could be solved if our taxes actually went towards our people and not towards killing people

48:00abroad and towards funding a seller Colony state that kills people on The Daily because this did not start October

48:077th as we all know yeah um so that’s kind of my two cents thank you so much for like involving us and hosting this

48:15thank you so much thank you that was way more than two cents that was a whole lot

48:21said exposing everything since 1947 and exposing the situ syst system

48:27here we did put the uh link to the report from uh that uh from the YouTube thing and so um it’s in the chat for the

48:35report that uh you referenced and now we turn uh to the political analysis and

48:42you reference what happened in Dural uh and how that got reversed uh after

48:47Zionist pressure there they passed a very uh uh mild uh but honest uh

48:54resolution to try to deescalate things in uh in the Middle East no one knows

49:00better than Angie Nixon about what what it’s like to have uh the pressure that

49:06was exerted in Dural but she did it in in November in November she stood up to

49:12have a ceasefire resolution in in the Hall of in in Tallahassee in the

49:19legislature and she stood up when she was basically alone and stood firm for

49:25for justice for what was right Angie Nixon is a Florida state representative in house district 13 representing the

49:31the people of and um she she’s executive director

49:37of Florida for all she’s a former SEIU director for higher education campaign a

49:43former SEIU field director and a current SEIU member she is a hero to many people

49:49and she knows again she knows how to speak truth to power and she’s here to tell us uh uh what

49:57uh what her experience has been and this issue and what her views and vision is uh for uh for on this issue Andrew Nixon

50:06for sure hi everyone it is such an honor and a pleasure to be with you all today can y’all hear me yeah okay great um I’m

50:14state representative Angie Nixon I represent Florida house district 13 based out of Jacksonville Florida uh as

50:21was stated I am a community organizer so therefore I care about people and I am a

50:27former uh CIU um campaign director for

50:32the higher education campaign and so like and I I grew up in the union household my mom was a member of CWA so

50:39like I care about Working Families I care about all people um and I’m really

50:45happy that you all are having tonight’s event the the situation is really dire

50:53um and I was asked to come on and just to to let you all know kind of my

51:00thought process and how everything went down back in November and so you know

51:05back in November we had a uh very politic we still do a very politically

51:12ambitious governor who was pandering for votes and wanted to score cheap political points because he was running

51:19for president of the United States um and so he decided that to try to uh

51:26score you more to PE cheap political points and to um not he tried to not let

51:33a crisis go to waste and call a special session specifically around uh what

51:39happened um in October and so they basically wanted to just label it was

51:48really bad y’all I’m just gonna be very transpan it was really bad it was really gross the way in which they wanted to um

51:55call all pal Ians uh you know anti-semites and they

52:00wanted to pass resolutions only in support of the people of Israel um yes

52:06the folks I am upset that the hostages got taken and everything but I am also upset that we are continually seeing

52:13people lose their lives time and time again and so knowing that um there is a

52:19large Palestinian community in Jacksonville Florida knowing that one of

52:24my friends my dear friends friends and someone who I’ve organized alongside in

52:29Jacksonville uh was the Palestinian American and she had family over in Gaza

52:35I decided to reach out to her and ask her like what could I do to support um

52:41the Palestinians especially because there was this really gross special session that was called and so through

52:48it her and I talked and discuss and we decided um for me to file a resolution

52:54now granted we also tried to expand my fellow Democrats tried to expand the

53:00call for a special session to address things that Floridians truly cared about because let’s be real there’s nothing

53:05that we can do as it relates to international relations and so we asked

53:11to address the housing crisis the affordability crisis the the rising property insurance crisis that’s

53:18happening here the rates and and the rising rents and they didn’t want to hear any of that yet and still they’ve

53:25also never heard any of my bills really uh but they decided to hear this

53:30resolution in support of Palestine right um and so they there was a lot of

53:37maneuvering I had folks on my side of the aisle that were upset at me as well

53:42people were yelling someone even stated that this is gonna dry up our funding like a Democrat stated that this

53:49is gonna dry up our fundraising and I’m like I don’t care about that like I care about people we need to stand up for

53:56people and so you know I I filed a resolution I spoke I basically was called a terrorist

54:03on the house floor I was called ignorant and even more um also Randy

54:10fine decided to get all the Republicans and everyone he could to stand up during my closing debate um my closing speech

54:17to stand up and turn their backs on me but not only that when I asked how many

54:22Palestinians Must Die for us to call for a ceasefire Michelle salsman the state representative over in the Panhandle

54:29said all of them and so what we have here y’all like is a life or death

54:36situation for a lot and it’s also goes to show you how the Republican Le

54:42legislature likes to play cheap play political games right like this was all about scoring cheap political points and

54:50then instead of addressing real issues and it’s really important I was asked um

54:55to just really go over like the fact that uh what the challenges that we’re

55:02facing the challenges that I’m facing I have an opponent I have a democratic opponent that Democrats some Democrats

55:08have put in the race and then of course the Republicans are backing them and so it’s really important for us to stand up

55:15for progressives that especially stand up in support of Palestine support of anti- aarid and

55:22support of just people right and we have to stand up by continually speaking out and speaking truth to power but you also

55:29have to like you have to help fund those folks right because there are people

55:34literally trying to take us out and if they do this they’re trying to silence us and so it’s really important for us

55:41to continue to to support candidates that are speaking truths to power who

55:46have the back of all people to go knock on doors for them you know to make phone

55:52calls for them if not that’s a win for them they are like the squad right now

56:00they have Targets on their back Corey bush has a Target on her back she is in a very very hard race right now and we

56:08have to look out for folks like that so we can continue to elect people who don’t care about speaking out against

56:14Injustice who will speak out for the people and that’s what they want to do

56:20like they they are labeling me ineffective and all types of things Rashida Talib is there’s a Target on her

56:26back as well there’s a Target on the entire squad’s back and so apack is a

56:32very well-funded machine as you all know and so we have to have people power we

56:38have to stand up and we also like have to have those uncomfortable conversations with our friends and

56:44family that you know and explaining it to them I see that I’m I’m overtime but

56:49I really just want to drive this home like we have to speak with people and we have to call people in before we decide

56:56to call them out but I just want everyone to know that like I am an accomplice through and through I am not

57:02politically ambitious I have to speak out because if not now when right um and

57:09you all put me there for a reason and I look forward to hopefully not hopefully I will be continuing to represent you

57:16all in Tallahasse thank you we love you

57:22Angie thank you Angie and uh we’re going to move now to Michael Michael Lewin is um a uh former public

57:31defender in Brooklyn New York uh and a of the association of legal aid

57:36attorneys he’s a co-convenor of the New York labor against the war and a founding member of labor for Palestine

57:43and he’s going to be the final speaker tonight for in this uh panel this section of the panel and sort of in some

57:50ways wrapping up all this since it’s labor for Palestine a uh summary comment on some of the labor for Palestine

57:57issues that have come up so far so Michael thank you all it’s I’m honored

58:02to be here thanks to LCA for sponsoring this panel discussion and especially to synos and farus who join us from from

58:09occupied Palestine um as said my name is Michael Lewin I am a former president of

58:15my union UAW 2325 and I mention that in particular because we are under we are

58:21currently defying a congressional Witch Hunt in retaliation for for having adopted a Palestine solidarity

58:28resolution and there’s a number of my union siblings on this call both from that local and from UAW labor for

58:34Palestine which I’m also part of uh I don’t know if I can answer the questions

58:39posed uh as so many of of us have have been doing tonight um but with the few minutes we have left in this part I’d

58:46like to try to do my best by focusing on the critical role of rank and file uh

58:51workers within the mushrooming movement of Labor solidarity with Palestine first to say that in that regard labor for

58:59Palestine itself was launched in April 2004 so just over 20 years ago to

59:05reclaim the legacy of earlier Rank and file workingclass solidarity with Palestine We Didn’t Start we didn’t

59:11start that it started with uh in the late 60s with groundbreaking statements by the league of revolutionary black

59:17workers in Detroit in 1969 and then also with Wildcat strikes and protests also in Detroit in 1973

59:27against not the company in that situation but actually against the UAW leadership support for Israel during the

59:331973 war and that was an aabl uh movement which many others

59:39joined in and today in that tradition or even start 20 years ago when we started

59:46lab for Palestine we were building on that uh tradition we were standing on their shoulders of earlier efforts and

59:53we’re doing the same today in expanding through the labor for Palestine national network which already has 36 member

59:59groups and is growing rapidly so I know perhaps it’s worthwhile through this

1:00:04Rank and F prism to take a moment to summarize just why Palestine is an issue

1:00:10for every worker a lot of it’s been touched on here tonight but I think the short answer is and always has been that

1:00:16this is a workingclass issue why and this is something we try to bring with us for wherever we go in La for

1:00:23Palestine and UW La for Palestine and all the groups that we’re working with one as said earlier an injury to one is

1:00:29an injury to all it’s the most basic labor principle and in that case you know in this case rather Israeli settler

1:00:36colonialism is part of the same usback system of racist violence that brutalizes black indigenous people of

1:00:43color and working-class people around the world and so we say that with Israel’s knee on their neck Palestinians

1:00:49can’t breathe and we unconditionally stand with them just as they have stood with our struggles for black and brown

1:00:54lives standing Iraq migrant rights and Beyond so that’s number one number two

1:01:00as also referenced here tonight our tax dollars fund Israel Israel crimes are

1:01:05committed with more than what was $3.8 billion a year who knows what it is now in bipartisan not just Republican US

1:01:14military aid and those tax dollars as said here before on the panel should be spent instead on badly needed jobs food

1:01:21housing Health Care education and transportation for poor and working people at home and of course course to

1:01:26rebuild Palestine and all Gaza and all of Palestine three our workplaces arm

1:01:33Israel many of our unionized factories Logistics Academia Tech and other

1:01:38workplaces without our consent produce weapons Transportation research technology and other materials for the

1:01:44genocidal Israeli regime without which none of this would be possible what’s happening to Gaza right now four our

1:01:51unions fund Israel our unions already are involved they’ve always been involved on the wrong side in the 1920s

1:01:58and 30s top labor officials donated Millions to the histadrut the Zionist labor Federation that spearheaded

1:02:04anti-palestinian dispossession aparte and ethic cleansing including the nakba that established the Israeli state in

1:02:091948 and for more than 70 years they have used our D union dues and Pension funds to buy billions of dollars worth

1:02:16of Israel bonds and today despite the horrendous Palestinian casualties most officials remain silent or Worse five

1:02:23fifth Global working-class solidarity is the only way to win and sixth workers can stop this genocide you know more

1:02:30than 50 years ago when those Arab and black workers in Detroit let a wildcat stri to protest us UAW complicity they

1:02:37proved the ability of workers to take direction action on this issue and today we can follow their example by

1:02:43respecting the BDS picket line by protesting bringing resolutions and so forth now since October 7th there has

1:02:51been this mushrooming labor solidarity with Palestine including major Union resolutions for ceas which is

1:02:56encouraging but we have to be honest that as the pgf Gaza that’s the Union in

1:03:02Gaza has pointed out and as us bombs continue to devastate Rafa today in Gaza we have to acknowledge that those

1:03:07resolutions have yet to be fulfilled and this is why we see in my own Union what we see in my own union today in the UAW

1:03:15in December the rank and file group UAW laid for Palestine which a number of us are part of on this call successfully

1:03:21pressured Union leadership am I almost done yeah I’m coming to an end yes sorry

1:03:27okay let me let me just then in this in this way to say this I’m proud to say

1:03:32that today thousands of rank and F members of UW 4811 are in fact launching

1:03:38a strike in solidarity with the Gaza solidarity encampments at the University of California that work is being done

1:03:43elsewhere you can find lb for Palestine on social media and lab forp palestine. net and please do get in in touch with

1:03:51us we’d be happy to hear from you thank you thank you well now now we’re going

1:03:56to move into another section with all the same speakers who’ve already spoken but everybody now given it some

1:04:03preliminary remarks uh but now everybody’s got to have a couple of

1:04:08minutes to react to all the things they’ve heard and or just extend their remarks by a couple of minutes uh maybe

1:04:15you heard something that you want to respond to or just uh that you trigger some other thoughts that you want to be

1:04:21able to expound upon you don’t have to say anything but we’ll go through it in the same order beginning of course with

1:04:28sundos sundos do you have any any other comments you’d like to make uh for a couple minutes uh I know we all like to

1:04:36hear you for a couple of hours but we don’t have time thank you thank you Jeff

1:04:41uh thank you everyone um again like it’s an inspiration to hear you all and uh I

1:04:48I just want to amplify that your voices uh in the US and what you are doing is

1:04:54like an echo to our uh uh voice here in Palestine so thank you from the heart um also I want to

1:05:02salute the uh student movement the student in and the uh us campuses where

1:05:10um I think they couldn’t do it and understand until this moment without the

1:05:17their community and that’s you guys so um you are an extension to their

1:05:23struggles and our struggles as uh uh as students and as workers and I want to um

1:05:30just finish with saying that Israeli Israel’s systematic ethnic cleansing

1:05:37theft of land and murder of indigenous Palestinians destruction of the Palestinian economy it’s discri

1:05:45discriminatory uh and racist laws against workers Palestinian workers in

1:05:50the west bang Gaza and the 48 occupied land um works as a system of upper tide

1:05:59um and with people United not only in Palestine with their trade unions and

1:06:05the unions in Palestine but International unionist uh standing against oppression

1:06:12and with Justice for Palestinians and for everyone every worker uh means uh

1:06:18that this upper tide regime will comes to an end and we can change the status

1:06:26quo and um as the student intifa today

1:06:31uh student movement in the US campuses have shake the system uh uh uh in the

1:06:37universities and it’s trying to end complicity uh with Israeli universities

1:06:43and cutting ties with Israeli governments and any investment related to the genocidal war in Gaza also what

1:06:50you are doing in your unions is amazing it’s an inspiration for us as Palestinian people to listen to you guys

1:06:57uh from distance just uh uh uh for the

1:07:02sake of humanity working on uh uh uh changing the the all the system of

1:07:09Oppression on for everyone not only for Palestinians because I believe that this

1:07:14is related to um Justice uh causes for

1:07:19everyone and without the justice for Palestinians today at this moment of History we will never have Justice for

1:07:27anyone like because I think it’s all related we are all living on an the same Earth and

1:07:35we can’t just look away of what is happening on Gazza today uh it’s live

1:07:40streaming genocide unfortunately and uh I just want to amplify your voices as

1:07:47long as with my people’s voices um because it’s overwhel

1:07:54whelmingly seeing everything that is happening today uh we in Palestine sometimes we

1:08:02feel that we can’t function anymore because we are living under oppression and when we see you guys like standing

1:08:09with us this gives us not only hope but this gives us like a glimpse of um a

1:08:16better future for our uh uh children and in this world that of

1:08:22of I don’t know of of different levels of um oppression um so just to to say

1:08:31that what you can do today is uh continue your great work please uh

1:08:38continue uh uh being part of uh the BDS movement because it’s one of the main uh

1:08:46basic uh uh tools to to end ties with the Israeli complicity and any

1:08:51government who are complicit uh in in The Killing of the people uh in Gaza and

1:08:58um um on the healthc care uh level on the uh educational level on the uh

1:09:05economical level uh we can do it we can just um uh because they will not wake up

1:09:14and say oh we shall we end this war like enough people that have been killed they

1:09:21will never do that thank you that’s yeah must we must end that by by uh uh

1:09:28hurting them uh economically and making them see uh and take responsibility of

1:09:35their actions today because we have the power we need to regain our power today

1:09:41as workers in this world and for them to take responsibility of their actions

1:09:47thank you so much thank you s beautiful comments

1:09:53barus um first of all thank you thank you all for U what you uh what you said

1:10:00and what you talk and today you are not just talk and just um make low your

1:10:07voices no you are acting in the street in the movement in Union in the student

1:10:13it’s really just um reflects uh reflects the real the real facing uh and the

1:10:19meaning of the facing the um the colonial the colonial system which in

1:10:25uh in in inside your country or outside your country as Palestinian as a as

1:10:31under Colonial system I need just to talk about uh two point I think it’s

1:10:37important to mention that uh the first point it’s about how the targeting

1:10:44education by the Israeli Colonial system and security system affect the student

1:10:50student life uh because when the time period process that the student go through the due to the prison Israeli

1:10:57prison the student is um is detained SL prison for a long period which make it

1:11:04difficult for for them uh as um a student was in the in inside the prison

1:11:10Israeli prison uh once they go release and uh take their freedom H it’s

1:11:17difficult to them to rent rrate uh with a new student in light of the graduation

1:11:22of the of of their colleagues uh and it’s a different uh a different

1:11:28environment in in University it’s so so that’s create a several challenge

1:11:34challenge for the student to continue their education uh and the second thing thing

1:11:40H it’s just the targeting education it’s not stop uh while the

1:11:45student take their education inside the university no it’s continuous after they

1:11:51graduate and go to the continuous their their life as a Palestinian for example

1:11:58uh in in this war um especially in this War uh they they arrest a lot of

1:12:04graduate students such such as lean Naser and a couple of journalist St

1:12:11student graduate from be University like Muhammad bad um and we have a lot a

1:12:19lot of student graduate was uh rearrest rearrested again from isra

1:12:26Israeli Army and it’s just not stop in this in in this point no they they also

1:12:32if even if arrest a student or kill them and being a Mart like is is Safi the

1:12:40last situation they just go and targeting their families um their

1:12:46Village and their Camp H and they broke break into into their houses uh and

1:12:52targeting their family uh mother father and the cousins for example while we are

1:12:58talking now the Israeli Army break into um jalon camp and go to the cousins and

1:13:05the family of isar Safi the Marty isar Sai who was killed by the Israeli sniper

1:13:13um the last the last week in 15 15 May

1:13:18so it’s it’s just um a continuous continuous continuous targeting and if

1:13:24we just just need to to make to make a brief because the time if we just if I

1:13:30need to conclude what what can I talk in one sentence when we just see the the

1:13:36whole picture you see that the colonial mentally that blow blows up and bumping

1:13:42our University such such as what happening in Gaza Strip in this genocide

1:13:49this is just reflects the mentally of real terroris terrorism and real real of

1:13:55the of colonial Colonial system how they work it’s not a um a mentally for normal

1:14:04people or normal act as as a political or as a a military uh person who work

1:14:11inside this um structure of the colonial system no it’s it’s not um it’s a it’s a

1:14:18mental just to kill it’s just um how they create the the tools just to

1:14:23killing uh to killing they they are killing us as a Palestinian because we are facing them

1:14:30every every day in our life and they will continue continue do the doing doing that outside also the Palestinian

1:14:38and targeting everybody will just solidarity with the Palestine the Palestinian

1:14:43student and people so we need just to re release this uh this fact because the

1:14:49the terrorist is is their mental and they’re acting as a colonial system not the Palestinian resistance in Gaza or

1:14:55outside Gaza thank you so much thank you for describing the real

1:15:03terrorism of imperialism and the resistance to it the the the hopeful resistance the the reality of resistance

1:15:09and the liberation of resistance uh Jackson

1:15:14Potter yeah um I guess I just want to finish by pointing out that unions are a

1:15:23critical Institution this fight for liberation of of Gaza West Bank and

1:15:30ensuring that the state of Israel doesn’t continue this reign of terror on that we’re seeing and as Democratic

1:15:37organizations we’re subject to a lot of in internal and external pressure we don’t pick our members so it’s really

1:15:44critical to lay out the groundwork for respectful debate and dialogue to preserve and strengthen solidarity as we

1:15:50move forward on these various issues to strengthen resolve in this key moment

1:15:57and our opponents really rely on repression and fear so you know

1:16:04increasing light and understanding and giving people more context has for us

1:16:11opened up even greater autonomous spaces for educators outside of official Union

1:16:16activity to express agency and solidarity with the Palestinian Community has enhanced practice with

1:16:22Jewish Le orgs that share our values and as a result I think we’re seeing a burgeoning coalition of unions in this

1:16:29country uh one of the greatest anti-war movements in a generation and the National Labor

1:16:35Network for ceasefire sees over 10 million workers represented under the mantle of ceasefire including my union

1:16:41the Chicago Teachers Union the UAW the largest Union in the country the national Educators Association and we’re

1:16:48going to need this labor movement not only to win ceasefire but prevents fascism in the USA repres presented by

1:16:55the Maga block which will seek to greatly curtail Democratic rights and our ability to organize the unorganized

1:17:02um and so we want to build upon this Mo moment and break open those major cracks

1:17:08that we’re seeing for the first time that has challenging the hegemonic control Zionist forces have had on the

1:17:14US public um you know over our entire history so uh you know since this the

1:17:21formation of the state of Israel and I think this is a huge development and it’s going to take all of us to you

1:17:27know win additional concessions from you know this military-industrial complex to

1:17:33really Center human needs over the greed and kind of domination that we’re

1:17:39seeing we Bob Islam you have any comments you’d like to

1:17:45make yeah I just wanted to thank everybody again for all the insights um and I did I just see a question in the

1:17:52chat um I figured I could uh try to address about like how can we help push forward CA

1:17:58resolutions um you know in the face of workers being afraid you know you know

1:18:04lack of decent working conditions and the lack of accessibility to health care for the general public um just kind of

1:18:10commenting on that the approach that we have been and you know Ananda definitely feel free to um address this part too

1:18:17but I think the approach that we’ve sort of been taking um has been really

1:18:22highlighting the the humanitarian crisis aspect um just because that we think

1:18:29that that is one important way to you know at least gather more healthcare workers I mean we’re all really should

1:18:35be on the same side here we really should be all about caring for patients

1:18:40caring for those who are in need so focusing on that and pushing forward

1:18:46information that really shows the level of Crisis that’s going on there um and

1:18:52one of the big ways I think that we want to continue propelling this is um the Dr Al ghoul um who’s a doctor at shans um

1:19:00actually went on a mission trip to Gaza and came back and that’s the report back um that um that um Jeff posted the link

1:19:08for in the chat he and a couple of the doctors in Florida them talking about that was really powerful um because in

1:19:15that they talk directly about what did they witness and really just highlighted

1:19:21the fact that they were like there was nothing else that you know for them without any even taking some of the

1:19:27politics out of it like just needed a ceasefire they’re like we need to see a ceasefire to see the end of this kind of

1:19:33Destruction these human lives so one approach we’re wanting to take is really

1:19:39keep on propagating that information forward that’s that firsthand information that really focuses on the

1:19:45need to save more lives um and we’re we’re hoping that if we get enough

1:19:51people to comment on that we can help them see that that a ceasefire and

1:19:57pushing for human saving human life is not you know anti-emetic as they fear or

1:20:05you know these kind of things um and we do hope that you know them starting to

1:20:12divest from corporations does open up a conversation um as far as in other

1:20:18counties how to replicate that I think just the persistence like the people who started Healthcare work ERS uh for Gaza

1:20:26they’ve been at this for for many many months now and their work has been

1:20:31really amazing um so just trying to keep having those conversations keep connecting with the Commissioners and um

1:20:39rallying the community that that local like local resolutions do matter um and

1:20:45helping them understand why it matters thank you thank you uh before I

1:20:52get to Karina and and Alanda I I need to get to Angie uh so if you don’t mind I

1:20:58sort of went out of order there but uh Angie can you uh come online and make

1:21:03any comments you have to make I know you have to get to to another meeting if you’re still here there you

1:21:09are I’m sorry I stepped away can you repeat the question I have a three-year-old running around in the background I apologize I I know that you

1:21:16had to uh leave and so if you have any any any comments you want to make there’s a moment there if you have any

1:21:21comments you want to make for a two minute period no just um just continue

1:21:27to speak out y’all like one of the reasons that many of my colleagues

1:21:34uh one of one of the many reasons that U many elected officials don’t speak out

1:21:39in support of Palestine even though they try to say they are supportive of it in the background is because they need more

1:21:45cover from people um and so what that means is just continually being vocal

1:21:51continually write writing opets continue to show up to meetings continue to try

1:21:56to get petitions and and things like that sign to like show support um

1:22:03because unfortunately some people just need more people uh they they don’t like

1:22:08to be the only one or the odd person out and so I would just say just continue to call people in and also work to educate

1:22:15elected officials about um what’s going on the crisis um and you know just the

1:22:22history of Palestine because a lot of people don’t know right and um those who

1:22:27are supportive of uh Israel um and n and

1:22:32Yahoo um like they they got a lot more money to continually spread their message and so folks just don’t know so

1:22:39if you could uh just continue to educate people and to be loud um and supportive

1:22:46of the Palestinians over there that’s what I would say thank you thank you very much Angie for just okay Karina

1:22:56thanks yeah I just you know to Echo the thanks and appreciation um to the organizers and to all the panelists and

1:23:03you know just to say that something again that comes across really strongly in all the presentations is the

1:23:08intersectionality of all of our struggles and um how Palestine and the Palestinian Liberation struggle is you

1:23:15know really an inspiration and really reminds us of of these interconnections

1:23:20and I feel very privileged to work in the higher education sector um with students but also in in the um in in the

1:23:27labor movement and higher education because this um the intersectionality is

1:23:33something that the students really um have recognized early on and you know

1:23:38they have constantly made these connections between um policing and you

1:23:44know the the training for example in New York of the NYPD with the Israeli

1:23:49occupation forces the same material interest that um you know are uh

1:23:54creating neoliberal austerity here and defunding our institutions healthc care higher education are what um you know

1:24:02the the same material interest that benefit from imperialist war Zionism settler colonialism genocide and

1:24:08dispossession um and so these connections are being made clearer and clearer today and we still need to

1:24:14continue to push it’s difficult sometimes universities are um sometimes difficult spaces to make these arguments

1:24:21in because of their entanglement so are our unions and you know both need to be decolonized in a way um but these

1:24:28struggles are are happening and um I’m so inspired by all of you and this makes

1:24:34me hopeful um really for the future and that you know we’re continuing to build we’re continuing to grow and that’s why

1:24:40the repression also in the same way that you know the reason that Gaza is the

1:24:45target of Oppression ISC of of the genocide is because of the resistance and you know this is why um the student

1:24:52movement here the more radical um you know wing of the Trade union movement here and other um or organizers are

1:24:59being repressed in this country because um you know the state capital um

1:25:05imperialism Zionism they see us as a threat and they should um because we are a threat um and and and we do have power

1:25:12and I do believe that we will win and um you know and being here with you all tonight reminds me of that so thank

1:25:19you Ananda we will win Ananda

1:25:25hi um just to kind of voice um of course thank you for hosting us and for having

1:25:30us here um I think I’m not really sure what to leave it off with but I know

1:25:36like one of the things that you guys have been asking is like since we were able to get our County to divest um from

1:25:44the get-go what we’ve really been doing is just being very persistent like with

1:25:49emails with meetings like private meetings with Commissioners um our members have been doing that um we would

1:25:55go to like the commissioner meetings even if like what our like Cy resolution is one of the things we’ve been going

1:26:01for even if it wasn’t on like the agenda we would go and during the comment like period like we would talk about getting

1:26:09it put on the agenda we would talk about why it matters to us and why they should be listening to their um constituents

1:26:15and why just essentially talking about what’s going on um Dr ASG good was one

1:26:21of the people that came to the meetings and he spoke as physici about it and about him knowing people that have been

1:26:28directly affected by it there’s been Palestinian Americans that have come and spoke up to the Commissioners like we

1:26:34show up in numbers and then we like actively engage with them even if like

1:26:39we get shot down like we would show up in the next meeting and we’d talk about it again so I think just persistence and

1:26:47not backing down I feel like given our space the fact that I can turn off my

1:26:52phone and I don’t have to deal with the images anymore is a privilege in itself

1:26:57and if we’re able to like do that we should essentially um I know with

1:27:04workwise like it’s very difficult to speak up about it at work especially when work just doesn’t want political

1:27:09quote unquote political because I don’t really thinks this is political but political like stances like at work and

1:27:15I know given like the current like economy like we don’t want to give up our work stance so it is a risk to take

1:27:22but I personally think it’s a risk I’m willing to take even if it may affect my employment or even my possible admission

1:27:29to medical school I see it as I wouldn’t want to go to a medical school that doesn’t want their students caring about

1:27:35this so I think you just kind of have to balance the risk kind of put yourself out there um I never saw myself founding

1:27:43a group at all I’ve never been the type of person to do that but I reached out

1:27:48to um one of The Midwives that’s in our group when I went to um Jewish voes for

1:27:55peace one of those meetings and I just let them know I was like Hey like we’re both within the health sphere like have

1:28:01you been able to find anyone that’s been involved and it kind of started there where we were like we should start

1:28:08something and they had way more connections than I did because I’m not from Gatesville and I don’t like I’m not

1:28:15a midwife or someone of that level but I think as long as you do what you can and you push for what you believe in

1:28:22especially with something like this anything’s really possible and then you’ll find more of a community and I

1:28:27think the main thing that this issue has been teaching us is that Community is everything and as a community we can

1:28:33achieve anything we put our minds to if that makes sense thank you definitely makes

1:28:39sense uh and Michael well first of all thanks again and much respect for everything that

1:28:46people here are doing I guess what I want to just end with is what I failed

1:28:52to accurate time in my earlier comments and that is that you know in in labor

1:28:58which is you know the the subject of this particular panel I think we need to always be mindful of the difference

1:29:05between uh our unions talking the talk and walking the walk so again you know

1:29:10in December and this is the experience we’ve had in the UAW which is often held up as being a model of you know support

1:29:18for Palestinians but you know it’s more it’s more complicated than that because there’s the there’s the talk and then

1:29:24there’s the reality and we just need to be aware of that because it goes to why Rank and file action is so important you

1:29:30know in December UAW live for Palestine which had recently been founded like in October successfully pressured Union

1:29:36leadership to call for a ceasefire and that was a good thing it took a long time for them to do it but they finally did but since then our leadership has

1:29:44defeated a motion to divest from Israel bonds that just happened a couple weeks ago has done nothing to organize UAW

1:29:50members to stop sending weapons to other mil military technology to Israel and has endorsed genocide Joe for

1:29:58reelection and I think these kinds of issues you know I know this has come up a little bit in the chat but I think the

1:30:03point is is that I’m mentioning this because these are issues that are going to be equally relevant in all of our unions not only the question of giving

1:30:09you Union to pass the cefa resolution which of course is important but to actually make it mean something to give

1:30:15it you know meaning to give it content not just to be hot air because that’s another part of the problem and to

1:30:24remember that we’re here to you know in labor in particular we’re here to respect the urging call from Palestinian

1:30:29trade unions to end all complicity and stop arming Israel as called for you

1:30:35know back in October by this statement that I’m putting into the chat and of course that in turn only reflects many

1:30:40decades of similar calls and for us to stand in solidarity with the struggle for Palestinian Liberation and return

1:30:47and I think this is where you know we need to always come back to is to one demand an immediate end of The Siege on

1:30:54Gaza but also to all US military aid for Israel two to follow the example of

1:31:00block the boat the is Wu dockers on the west coast and workers around the world who are refusing to build or transport

1:31:06weapons destined for Israel and three you know for respecting the Palestinian Le BDS picket line in our in

1:31:14the case of unions by severing ties with the racist Federation the hist TRS uh

1:31:19and by divesting from Israel bonds and industries connected with Zionism and settle to colonialism and if we do that

1:31:26if we adhere to that we can play our part in Palestine being free from The River To The Sea so I would just like to

1:31:33to urge us and encourage us to keep those things um in the Forefront to respect the Palestinian Trade union

1:31:39picket line and not to be Crossing that picket line in Deeds or in words so thank

1:31:45you thank you and now we’re going to turn to a a period of questions and answers to be

1:31:51chaired by uh to be moderated shared by by kolina uh kolina take it

1:32:01away oh I’m sorry the time the the microphone I couldn’t find it uh okay so

1:32:08we’re going to go with h with the first question which is how can we go forward

1:32:14providing solidarity with those fighting against brutal Colonial acquisition in

1:32:20Palestine and I’m actually not going to go in in order I wanted to to open this

1:32:27and if you have uh if you have the answer please just raise your hand and you can go

1:32:38first maybe you could put the question in the chat okay so give me one second

1:33:04that’s the question on the chat how can we go forward with providing solidarity

1:33:10for those fighting against brutal Colonial acquisition in

1:33:20Palestine t yeah so I think that uh what you can do

1:33:28guys is keep educating yourself and your community your unions uh it’s a United

1:33:34action of solidarity and uh without being

1:33:40united um less people will be interested uh and more people will be looking away

1:33:47and I think um it’s really important today that in uh In This Moment Of

1:33:53History where um um Joe Biden goes and

1:33:58say and draws the red line a lie we need

1:34:04to um draw our own red line and our own

1:34:09Redline says that stop the genocide Stop The Killing of the people and stop the

1:34:14upper tide regime and uh I think this is really important to to as I said in in

1:34:22the start and as you you many of you mentioned like we need to regain our power and um we are the stakeholders of

1:34:30our own cause and this must be ended from bottom up because they will these

1:34:37people will not uh say no to genocide without being um um without

1:34:44feeling what is going on and without feeling the uh result of their actions

1:34:50and I want to conclude by um uh there’s there’s a um a recent uh call

1:34:58from the Palestinian unions uh that was published in 1 of May I don’t know if

1:35:03you have um uh seen that but uh I can I I will send it to the chat and they are

1:35:11asking as Palestinian unions they are urging Global solidarity unions against

1:35:18uh Israel’s genocide aperti and exploitations of workers and think this

1:35:24is really important because uh this is solidarity on another level because um

1:35:30I’m I’m new to this to to the unions and their power I just educated myself since

1:35:36the start of the war about this and let me uh just um express my feelings when

1:35:44when I say like I I I’m really honored by uh of being here with you guys and

1:35:49listening to you because uh now more than ever I’m learning how Collective

1:35:56work and Collective resistance and resilience uh is making a different in

1:36:02this world um so yeah thank you so much and I hope that I answered the

1:36:10question that was great actually suos and you know when when we are talking

1:36:16about the the labor movement it’s important that we all see it as us coming together for the things that we

1:36:23want and that is very similar to when we’re are fighting at the community level

1:36:30because it’s us coming together and pushing those who make those decisions

1:36:35so that we get those things that are important and that match our values so

1:36:42it’s really really important the next question that we had on the chat was how

1:36:49can we go ahead with a process for educating those who are not currently in

1:36:56the movement for Palestinian Liberation good so they understand why we are doing

1:37:03what we are doing car karolina uh Karina has her hand up oh Karina go ahead

1:37:10that’s that’s okay that’s okay I can I can I can try and answer the two together perfect

1:37:17okay yeah because I was I was just going to follow up and thank you sundas for those powerful words um I agree with you

1:37:24completely and you know also um I’m very um honored and proud to organize with

1:37:30labor for Palestine and we um uh very early on uh when Michael as Michael

1:37:36discussed um took up the call from the Palestinian Trade union Federation and um and I absolutely agree with um

1:37:44respecting the BDS picket line and that is how we honor the call for solidarity

1:37:50from our Palestinian Trade union siblings and as has been said you know

1:37:55that is what really is at the heart of trade unionism is that solidarity and um in this case solidarity means um

1:38:02respecting that picket line and um and also standing in in solidarity with the

1:38:07National Liberation struggle and and with the resistance and I think that’s what Sophia put in the chat and I agree

1:38:12100% with that too um and I would just say political education is really really

1:38:17important how we win people over the trade Trade union spaces are difficult spaces liberalism is hegemonic at Best

1:38:26in trade unions in my Trade union we also have a lot of zionists and people who support imperialism openly um and

1:38:34that’s really difficult and eventually we need to um create I think um a leadership structure and a you know a

1:38:42political line within the union that um lets those people know that you know they’re if if that’s their position they

1:38:49can’t they’re not going to be U find a place for themselves in the union I mean that that’s um ultimately you know

1:38:54there’s a line in our Union at least and I’m sure in a lot of unions about fear of of Divisions and lack of unity and

1:39:01that Palestine is creating divisions that’s not what’s creating divisions what’s creating divisions is having racists in our unions having people who

1:39:09are okay with um genocide and settler colonialism that’s what causes the divisions and I think it’s really um

1:39:16important for us to clarify those dividing lines and the more we do um the more people that we will uh win over

1:39:23because you know I do believe that a majority of our of the working class in this country um can be one over um to um

1:39:31uh the question of of to uh supporting National Liberation in Palestine to ending ending the genocide especially if

1:39:37they see it as connected um to uh workers exploitation here and you know

1:39:43again as we’ve pointed out how um how you know little money there is for funding um social goods in our country

1:39:50so you know whether it’s Education and healthc Care and housing um and so I think it’s about making those

1:39:55connections political education the history of learn learning about settler colonialism the role of us labor unions

1:40:02and supporting um uh settler colonialism and uh ethnic cleansing and aparte in

1:40:07Israel in in Palestine and uh is is incredibly important um so political

1:40:13education but also um really clarifying those uh those those those political

1:40:18lines for people

1:40:28thank you so much Karina and that was actually so powerful and does anyone

1:40:35want to add anything to that question Jackson your

1:40:40turn yeah I would just say part of withstanding against the barage of

1:40:48attacks that we face in kind of popular movements as we’re demand

1:40:53Justice is give giving people what they need to be able to adjust and resist as

1:41:02those attacks become harder and more direct so I’ll give an example uh our

1:41:08pension fund has six elected active teachers and retired

1:41:14teachers um we have to really dig deep to get them more familiar with the issue

1:41:21and we’re doing that but they’ve divested from the armaments industry already um because of you know the

1:41:28violence that’s endemic to many US cities um it’s not that far to consider

1:41:35divesting from the military for similar reasons in that it takes innocent lives

1:41:40it you know uh takes money that could be invested in schools in the hospital system Etc socialized medicine um

1:41:48universities for free right and that is going to be helpful to them in pursuing

1:41:55a divestment strategy but as soon as they do that I guarantee you there will be legislation to merge our pension

1:42:03system and weaken and attack us from a different angle and if they’re not ready

1:42:08for that attack and our members aren’t brought along in a very popular widespread manner um then we will suffer

1:42:16a loss even as we advance the struggle on Palestinian needs and and demands of

1:42:22the labor un movement so I think we have to be careful in preparing our people to

1:42:28fight this fight so that we’re successful thank you so

1:42:35much uh the next question is in the chat

1:42:40and I’m going to also read it it says how can we help forward the ceasefire

1:42:48resolutions in the face of workers being threatened to be fired have no speech a

1:42:56lack of decent working conditions and general lack of accessibility to health

1:43:02care for the public and I know that that sundos

1:43:10addressed it earlier actually it was also rubab I think who mentioned a

1:43:16little bit of that uh but if anyone wants to take this question uh please

1:43:21raise your hand

1:43:45I can’t find the raised hand button sorry um but just to add on um to what I

1:43:55had been saying earlier um just the same thing kind of reiterating the same thing we talked about um reiterating the

1:44:03conditions there that the Palestinians are suffering the lives being lost and and just the the catastrophic injuries

1:44:10as well um sharing the firsthand accounts again I I think super important

1:44:17and has been really moving for everybody who has seen them I think one thing that we are still working on is getting those

1:44:24who are not already educated on the topic to to view these um these talks

1:44:31and discussions um so we share a lot on social media and I have heard and been

1:44:39told um that from some people that oh these posts and these social media things are the only way I get any

1:44:45information um and so that’s the one way we’ve been getting more Outreach to healthcare workers in alatua county and

1:44:53and um on top of that just pointing out the conditions that the healthcare workers there are having to work in

1:45:00which is really I mean just deplorable like just nothing they’re working with basically nothing so um coming at it

1:45:07from uh that angle as well I think um can really bring people together and

1:45:14hopefully you know make people realize that it’s you know make the leadership

1:45:20realize that that the ceasefire really is the only Way Forward um I think that’s really just the main the main

1:45:27thing that needs to be to start with to protect lives um so just being

1:45:33persistent for us is going to be a main thing we’re going to keep meeting with them like Ananda

1:45:44said awesome thank you I I also wanted and I wrote on the on the chat to to get

1:45:53if if anyone wants to add something that would help drawing the direct lines that

1:45:59some of us see on the lack of funding to the domestic needs that are actually

1:46:06killing people here in the US and that because we’re using the money that

1:46:11should be used here to keep killing people abroad and how do you see that that line

1:46:20and what can we do about it

1:46:34anyone Ananda I’m not too sure if I might be

1:46:40the most qualified to answer this um but I know like everyone just everyone

1:46:46within the working class and that’s involved in this and I think just everyone dislikes what our taxes go to

1:46:53um I’m not too sure exactly what we should do but I just feel like more

1:47:01Massive Action is needed for things to actually be taken seriously um I feel as

1:47:06though the government here at this point shows that they don’t really care what

1:47:12citizens say or what their people actually would prefer they don’t care about the fact that people are like

1:47:20skipping diabetic medications because they can’t afford their insulin um they

1:47:25don’t care if you’re not able to see a specialist in time of course I’m taking it from a healthare Viewpoint because I

1:47:31actively am engaged in healthcare um but I just feel as though if we were

1:47:38to take more of a not to say that we’re not taking a stand but I feel as though

1:47:43we need to like try to actively engage in more um boycotting of course is one

1:47:49of like the best ways to do so it’s been used like multip multiple times in history um as a kind of like a passive

1:47:57way to kind of have a voice um it shows it like power through money and I think

1:48:05that’s one of the most effective ways to do anything when you’re in such a late stage

1:48:10capitalistic Society at this point where the only reason they continue to fund

1:48:16Israel is because Israel gets them what they need and the control that they

1:48:22desire and the power that they want in the Middle East and even other Middle Eastern countries that aren’t doing much

1:48:27is because they gain from having Israel there they gain from showing support to

1:48:32America all the countries that are speaking out um even like the Latin American countries are speaking out um

1:48:38I’m Cuban myself and I’ve been extremely proud to see the fact that the Cuban FL Community has been so open against um

1:48:46the apothide happening in Palestine given that Cuba also suffers from the way that America treats us there

1:48:53um the stuff going on in Haiti the Sudan like everything is so connected to money

1:49:00and really the only way we can actively I I feel the only thing that

1:49:05they listen to is money and so if we continue to disrupt their money and we continue to just be very like active in

1:49:14our voices kind of is all we can do at this point um support your students um I’m

1:49:21also a student the student inalas have been incredible to witness uf’s like

1:49:27Liberation Zone has been amazing to witness the fact that we’re doing this um UCF um FIU USF like everything that

1:49:36we’re doing in Florida even with how difficult it is to do things in Florida I think we can all learn from what the

1:49:43students are doing and we should all do it not just students but unions and

1:49:48normal workingclass people and doctors and nurses like everyone be doing these

1:49:54sorts of things to show that like this isn’t just oh like we’re just going to brush it off like no like this is

1:49:59something that everyone actively like disagrees with and the government I think needs to start actually listening

1:50:05to the people again thank you that’s time I love that

1:50:11thank you H Lorenzo you’re up

1:50:23Renzo you’re on mute thank you nucleus uh I said I was

1:50:30going to try I’m gonna try to do in 30 minutes what um um I could do I would I

1:50:36was planning to do in five but no no problem because this has been a fantastic Forum a a tremendous uh

1:50:42educational experience a really uh a incredible participation uh a um a

1:50:50wonderful a wonderful event uh one of the the the things that we need

1:50:56to take out of this deal uh is that believe it or not we are winning we are

1:51:02definitely going to be winning Ananda just laid out h a a few of the reasons

1:51:09why we are winning and the the the the the the point main point is the amount

1:51:16of people around the world at one time were being slept by uh ER us imperialism

1:51:24are are now waking up uh to uh fight against this gross abuse that is was

1:51:34happening in Palestine um the the fact that Colombia Colombia bombia who five

1:51:41years ago was uh in in NATO uh Colombia the fact that bis uh who the hell has

1:51:48heard of bis doing any stand in in in forign policy that Bolivia uh that a few

1:51:56years ago also had a K in favor of the US uh all of these countries have broken

1:52:02relations with with uh with uh with uh Israel that in Europe there is a

1:52:07movement now spreading in Western Europe uh to uh

1:52:14uh isolate uh Israel and uh recognize Palestine as the as a

1:52:21nation uh this is a extremely important thing to us to keep in mind we need to

1:52:29keep pushing uh and keep pushing and and make sure that uh this uh uh things get

1:52:36get uh uh done um three things ceasefire

1:52:42we need a ceasefire we need to keep fighting for the ceasefire over 75% of the American people almost all the polls

1:52:49that I have seen are in favor of the Sea Fire uh even a lot a large number of

1:52:55Republicans I believe uh the last one I saw it was even 50% um are for sepire uh

1:53:03so it is a a really an important thing to to uh point that out and also the

1:53:10military thing uh why the military thing because it’s millions of dollars that are being spent in Israel and other

1:53:19military industrial complex Adventures throughout the world that are necessary to be stopped in order to be able to

1:53:25deal with all the things that we have to deal with in the in the United States uh I don’t have to tell you uh the the

1:53:33things that we need to do um in terms of the of this country

1:53:40because we are losing our our life our life the way that we used to live our

1:53:46standard of living is coming down and down and down and uh and uh uh had no

1:53:52other thing um the divestment uh people mention the divestment is is an

1:53:57important concept uh to be able to divver uh the Union funds to work

1:54:03together to divver Union funds and to work together uh to get the universities

1:54:09to divest from uh um um any any dealings with Israel this is not only happening

1:54:15in United States it’s also happening in Europe and has happening in in in in Latin American countries in in in Africa

1:54:22also in terms of all that Latin America Africa Europe uh we we need to start seeing the world

1:54:31uh in in regards to a fight against uh economic privilege that

1:54:39are being expressed through white supremacy uh and that and that uh we

1:54:45need to uh be able uh to uh forment that united front worldwide I mean people are

1:54:53getting killed in Africa to support uh economic privileges for for white

1:54:59supremacy in Latin America we have the the the same problem um we have a a a a

1:55:06slow motion a genocide going on in Cuba uh and and uh we need to fight all those

1:55:13things uh um so that this is extremely important uh that we uh uh do that uh

1:55:21boycott the the the boycott of uh

1:55:27the Israeli um products in Industries all

1:55:34all of those uh things um are are are are important to affect

1:55:42economically the the the regime of upper side that that that exist in

1:55:48Israel the the resolution that the erh South Africa brought into to the

1:55:55international court of justice about uh what the H the genocide and the apide

1:56:01that is going on in in in in in Israel needs to be propagated and talk about

1:56:06and all all but the main thing is that we I’m sorry the main thing is that we

1:56:12need to uh continue working together U build Bridges and and and uh and and

1:56:20continue to do things uh that will promote um and and which will start uh uh uh tonight thank you

1:56:29very much uh and uh I thank you all of you for coming in the name of the LCA

1:56:36and the other organizations that participated in this effort uh and um um

1:56:43be be faithful we’re going to win uh we we the just look at the world 60 years ago

1:56:51compared to now and and uh we’re going to win you and we look forward to hearing you in the same in the next

1:56:57meeting please stay in touch with LCA and with all the forums that we put

1:57:03together thank you and have a good night everyone thank you Carolina

1:57:09for doing seven jobs at the same

1:57:15time thank you all good night good night love you all

1:57:22bye bye Candace night bye

1:57:28Glenda night thank you

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