Two New York lawmakers have introduced legislation that would block local charities from funding illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
State assembly member Zohran Mamdani (Queens) and State Senator Jabari Brisport’s (Brooklyn) Not on our dime!: Ending New York funding of Israeli settler violence Act would amend New York’s not-for-profit corporation law and establish a civil penalty for nonprofits that helped fund settlements in violation of the Geneva Conventions of 1949.
“Despite the clear illegality of this pattern of conduct, which has led to the expulsion and dispossession of Palestinians from their land (often in a violent manner), this practice has continued,” reads the bill. “Moreover, these illegal settlement activities have been funded by organizations here in New York State. In fact, between 2017 and 2019 alone, organizations that are known to primarily fund illegal settler activities fundraised over $144 million in New York State..In short, New York State is effectively subsidizing illegal activity abroad, and has been complicit in violent dislocations of Palestinian people.”
The Central Fund of Israel (CFI), a New York-registered non-profit, sends almost $50 million to Israel every year.
The bill has been praised by human rights organizations and local progressives. “Israeli settler violence against Palestinians has reached alarming levels, and we can’t let U.S.-based charities be used as fronts for illegal settlement construction on Palestinian land,” said Adalah Justice Project Director of Strategy Sumaya Awad in a statement. “New Yorkers are becoming increasingly critical of support for Israeli apartheid. It’s long past time our state government caught up and took action to end funding for violence perpetrated against Palestinians.”
“A variegated system of government and private money is used to dispossess Palestinians of their lands and homes. Today, we demand its end,” said Kaleem Hawa, a member of Palestinian Youth Movement’s New York chapter. “The funneling of millions of dollars to settlements from New York-registered charities amounts to a subsidy of Palestinian dispossession by American citizens. It’s time we stop New York’s funding of Zionist settler terror.”
The bill is already facing backlash from pro-Israel lawmakers. The New York Post reports that 25 of them have signed a joint letter condemning the move. “This bill is a ploy to demonize Jewish charities with connections to Israel. It was only introduced to antagonize pro-Israel New Yorkers and further sow divisions within the Democratic Party,” it reads.
“There’s a legislator in Albany who doesn’t believe in Israel’s right to exist,” tweeted Assembly Member Daniel Rosenthal. “That’s why 25 of us are condemning his bill that would stop NY charities from helping victims of terror in Israel. True chutzpah: he introduced this law while rockets were raining down on civilians.”
A 2015 investigation by Haaretz revealed that at least 50 U.S.-based tax-exempt nonprofits funded illegal West Bank settlements to the tune of more $220 million over a four year period. The money was “used for anything from buying air conditioners to supporting the families of convicted Jewish terrorists.”
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However, “Not On My Dime”, even if it fails, may serve as a powerful, workable model for communities nationwide to emulate in the growing grassroots movements speaking up and standing up to the entrenched political interests that serve a foreign, alien ideology at the expense of domestic political rights and freedoms.
Question for Any Zionist: Is it antisemitic according to IHRA to publicly suggest that politicians and political parties are disserving their domestic constituencies by conflating the interests of political Zionism with the interests of the United States?
View here 456 Palestine posters on the theme of The Nakba
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This new legislation may also serve as a major hasbara debunkage point. Hallelujah!
One of political Zionism’s favorite hasbaritic tactics is to accuse those who condemn Israel’s anti-Palestinian violence of being selective in their moral outrage because they do not at the same time also condemn Syria, Myanmar or North Korea, among others for similar, or worse, brutality. That “selectivity” is then handily dog-whistled over to the IHRA “example” of antisemitism that faults Israel’s critics for: Applying double standards by requiring of Israel behavior not expected or demanded of any other nation.
Zionists seem preternaturally obtuse regarding why Americans do not rail against Myanmar, et. al., as much as they do against Zionism/Israel. They seem incapable, or unwilling, to consider that this disparity exists because Americans do not fund, enable, arm, propagandize for, accommodate or run interference for those countries. The crimes of the government of Myanmar are reprehensible indeed and should be combatted but they are not a reflection of American political morality. The crimes of Israel, with whom we supposedly share “deep”, “special” and “unbreakable” bonds do reflect on the American people. Ergo, the disparity.
The “Not On Our Dime: End New York Funding of Israeli Settler Violence Act” is concrete, empirical evidence that at least some Americans own the courage to publicly disassociate from Zionism. Moreover, they have put themselves on record and have raised their displeasure to the level of legislation.
MAD respect!
Despite the feigned, predictable and pre-packaged outrage of Assembly Member Daniel Rosenthal and his 25 fellow Zionist apologists it should be evident that this legislation is not an attempt to isolate or delegitimize Israel, or even to abolish settler colonialism, a goal not within its powers. Rather, it is an effort to publicly abjure from the decisions of state and national level political leadership which has been corralled into blind, and seemingly perpetual, subservience to political Zionism.
Even if this Act is 100% successful, Zionist Settler Colonialism will sadly, likely continue to seize and occupy Palestinian lands, orchards, homes and farms owing to the multiple sources of funding available to it from Israeli governmental and international sources.
(cont.)