Black Lives Matter

Israeli police remove an Ethiopian-Israeli from a demonstration on Ayalon Highway following the police shooting of Solomon Tekah, July 2, 2019. (Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

Ethiopians have an opportunity at solidarity with Palestinians. Will they take it?

Solomon Tekah was shot and killed by an Israeli police officer because he was black. As a Palestinian I know exactly what that feels like. By Ashraf Ghandour For over a week I have watched Ethiopian Israelis conduct a loud and righteous struggle against the systematic racism that has held them down for 35 years.…

By +972 Magazine July 9, 2019

U.S. Congresswoman Ilhan Omar. (Leopaltik1242/CC BY-SA 4.0)

Movement for Black Lives backs leaders hit with anti-Semitism smears

The Movement for Black Lives comes out in support of Black progressive leaders such as Ilhan Omar, Angela Davis, and Marc Lamont Hill, who have been targeted for speaking out in favor of Palestinian rights. The Movement for Black Lives (M4BL), a coalition of more than 50 organizations representing black Americans, this week came out strongly in support…

By Edo Konrad February 25, 2019

Black Lives Matter activists organize a die-in action outside Memorial Church in Harvard University on December 7, 2014 in Cambridge, Mass. (Tess Scheflan/Activestills.org)

From Palestine to Ferguson: Reflections on shared grief and liberation

Formerly incarcerated women of color perform the story of a Palestinian teen killed by Israeli police in October 2000. The act of Black-Palestine solidarity highlights shared trauma, but also concrete ways toward liberation. By Jen Marlowe and Je Naé Taylor On October 2, 2000, Aseel Asleh, a 17-year old Palestinian citizen of Israel, was shot…

By +972 Magazine October 1, 2018

Latest

Screenshot from Childish Gambino's music video for 'This is America.'

How Childish Gambino explains the problem with Israel’s Eurovision win

Gambino’s new music video illustrates why audiences should focus on the injustices unfolding in the background of artistic performances – especially those representing the state. In the music video for his new single “This is America,” the singer and rapper Childish Gambino (Donald Glover) dances in a warehouse while scenes of violence and chaos unfold…

By Amjad Iraqi May 18, 2018

Ta-Nehisi Coates at the University of Virginia, January 22, 2015. (Eduardo Montes-Bradley/CC BY-SA 4.0)

Between Ramle and Me: Reading Ta-Nehisi Coates in Hebrew

Three activists, a Palestinian citizen of Israel, an Ethiopian Israeli, and a veteran Mizrahi organizer discuss the applicability of Ta-Nehesi Coates’s ‘Between the World and Me’ to their struggles in Israel. The killing of black men by police in the United States has, over much of the past half-decade, thrust the issue of American racism back into the…

By Edo Konrad January 15, 2018

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seen with his wife Sara and their son Yair, celebrating the Prime Minister's 64th birthday, October 20, 2013. (Kobi Gideon/GPO

How the Israeli Right succeeds at making itself the victim

From prostituting women to befriending anti-Semites, the Israeli Right has reached a level in which revealing its transgressions only evokes wonderment among its supporters. By Almog Behar We are in the historical stage of the ideological Right, in which every single detail, which would have previously embarrassed the right wing, now only strengthens it. The most…

By +972 Magazine January 12, 2018

Jewish activists take part in a Black Lives Matter protest in Brookline, MA, December 16, 2014. (Tess Scheflan/Activestills.org)

An important lesson on privilege, courtesy of Peter Beinart

In a recent article comparing Jewish anti-occupation activists IfNotNow with Black Lives Matter, the prominent Jewish American columnist creates divisions precisely where alliances are needed. By Tom Pessah The word privilege gets thrown around a lot in activist circles. People tend to interpret its use as an accusation, which it sometimes is. But reflection about…

By +972 Magazine April 7, 2017

American Jews from IfNotNow march at an anti-occupation protest, San Francisco, October 9, 2016.)

It’s time for American Jewish institutions to embrace dissent

In the age of Trump, American Jewish institutions need to include the majority of U.S. Jews who rejected his divisive rhetoric and give a platform to dissenting voices — whether they are speaking out against U.S. or Israeli government policy. By Ben Pakman The Jewish American people are entering what promises to be a tumultuous time…

By +972 Magazine February 11, 2017

President Shimon Peres visits an Israeli police counter-terrorism unit in 2011. (Amos Ben Gershom/GPO)

+972 Magazine’s 20 most-read posts of 2016

From Shimon Peres’ dark side to Donald Trump at AIPAC to Airbnb in settlements, here are the most popular articles we published this past year. By +972 Magazine Staff 20. Why I had to leave Israel’s Foreign Ministry As a former Israeli ambassador, Ilan Baruch never expected just how badly the country’s situation would deteriorate, with the…

By +972 Magazine December 23, 2016

From Palestine to South Carolina, justice is scarce for victims of police violence

The trials of two police officers in Israel-Palestine and the U.S. collapsed within hours of each other on Monday. Both cases prove how difficult it is to secure justice for Palestinian and African-American victims of state violence. On May 15, 2014, three Palestinian teenagers were shot by Israeli security forces with live ammunition as they attended…

By Natasha Roth-Rowland December 6, 2016

American Jews from IfNotNow march at an anti-occupation protest, San Francisco, October 9, 2016.)

Occupation denial is pushing me out of my Jewish community

I can no longer remain silent as many in the Jewish establishment continue to support the occupation, publicly reject the Movement for Black Lives, and remain silent on Trump. By Jenn Pollan Four years ago on a 100 degree day, I sat on the porch of a home in Bethlehem while a Palestinian man named…

By +972 Magazine October 10, 2016

San Francisco 49ers Quarterback Colin Kaepernick. (Mike Morbeck/CC BY-SA 2.0)

What Palestinian athletes can learn from Colin Kaepernick

Palestinian athletes can learn a thing or two from the football star’s refusal to stand during his country’s national anthem. By Abed Abu Shehadeh One can say many things about American politics, but boring they are not. We are seeing this with the presidential race and the rise of the American Right, which views the world as a…

By Haokets September 5, 2016

Activists march in Boston, Mass. on October 25, 2014, calling for an end to police racial profiling and violence. The protest came in the wake of events in Ferguson, Mo., following the fatal shooting by police of an unarmed black man. (Activestills.org)

Black Lives platform is a victory for transnational struggles

Black American activists have delivered a powerful message to Palestinians and other oppressed communities around the world: you are not alone in your causes. Of all the discussions I ever had about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, undoubtedly the most engaging ones were with delegations of black Americans who visited the region to learn firsthand about Palestinians…

By Amjad Iraqi August 7, 2016