WASHINGTON – More than 100 protesters descended on AIPAC’s annual conference on
the first day of its convention on Sunday, many wearing “settlement costumes”
painted with harsh bricks, wires and jagged Stars of David in a loud
demonstration of anger against American allegiances toward the Israeli
government.
The organizers of the demonstration against the American
Israeli Public Affairs Committee conference, dubbed Occupy AIPAC or Expose
AIPAC, claim more than 300 protesters will turn out over the course of the
three-day event.
Some of the protesters also held signs against Israel’s
perceived push toward war with Iran, which they say would inevitably involve the
United States.
Alli McCracker, national coordinator of Code Pink, says
her organization isn’t anti-Israel but rather generally anti-war – and that
freedom for all Palestinians and Israelis is its ultimate goal.
“I want
to see Israeli policies that don’t actively harm Israel,” McCracker said. “And
we think AIPAC is the primary organization that is promoting these awful
policies.”
Attending her fourth AIPAC protest was Medea Benjamin, Code
Pink co-director, who said her Jewish faith drove her to protest policies that
reflect on Jewry worldwide.
“I think AIPAC is losing power, but I don’t
think it is because of our protests,” she said. “I think its because of AIPAC.
I’d like to see Jews like myself have more compassion for the Palestinians, as I
was taught through my religion to be compassionate.”
As McCracker charged
over loudspeakers that AIPAC’s attendees weren’t welcome in Washington, more
than 13,000 Israel advocates had already packed inside the Washington Convention
Center for a gathering that attracts more members of the US government than
virtually any event besides the president’s State of the Union
address.
As the attendees entered the building, a blue truck circled the
convention center carrying a large sign that listed facts and figures about US
financial aid to Israel.
Tommy Lingo, an older man with an unkempt beard, guarded a checkpoint in front of the building
ceremoniously, carrying a cardboard gun brandished with a Star of David and the
word “occupiers.” One protester asked him if he could pass through if he wasn’t
Jewish.
McCracker clarified that though Code Pink uses Jewish symbols in
its materials, the organization isn’t protesting against Judaism or
Jews.
“The separation of peoples based on religion is exactly what we’re
protesting,” she said.
Benjamin added that “perhaps if we don’t want to
be hated around the world, we could try policies that don’t aggravate that hate.
It’s all sticks and no carrots right now. And these policies reflect on
all of us.”
Mixed in with the Code Pink crowd were members of the 9/11
truther movement, as well as at least one outspoken supporter of Hezbollah and a
quiet group of ultra-Orthodox Jews. While they protested together, all parties
seemed keen on differentiating themselves.
The Hezbollah advocate, who
declined to give his name, said that resistance through force is justified under
circumstances of aggravated occupation.
Dina Shanna, a small-business
owner and a Palestinian refugee from the Upper Galilee, said, “I’ve lived here
for 30 years, and it is concerning to me as an American, as much as it does
being Palestinian, that my tax dollars are going directly to programs in Israel
that violate human rights.
“It’s not that we shouldn’t give Israel aid,”
she said. “It’s that it should come with obvious, human conditions.” •