Anti-Boycotting Act: When Dissent vs Israel becomes illegal

While the world watches on, and while many Christians in the US continue to support Israel’s assault on Gaza, the genocide continues.

In addition to the 52,000+ that are dead, over 15,000+ of whom are children, and these numbers are most assuredly low, Israel refuses to allow any supplies into Gaza. As a result, over 70,000 children have been hospitalized for severe malnutrition, over 1.1 million lack nutrition requirements for survival, over 2 million face food insecurity, and things are assuredly only going to worsen as long as Israel’s blockade continues.

Finally, some Christian Zionists are beginning to object.

NB: see the livestream we held over the past two weeks with Christian Zionists Prof Joel Willits and Prof Darrell Bock.

But have we done enough? NO!

The US, acting largely from the encouragement of the evangelical church, remains complicit in the genocide of Gaza and the ethnic cleansing that will assuredly follow of Gaza and the West Bank.

“Donny Death”

Though I have held out some hope that Trump would stand up to Netanyahu, he has failed to shut down Israel’s campaign against Gaza. And this is to say nothing about the West Bank, where Israel continues to expel Palestinians from their homes and commit gross atrocities against the Palestinians.

NB: I expressed concern in a livestream with Palestinian leader Daniel Banurra and Palestinian lawyer Jonathan Kuttab that Israel only agreed to the ceasefire to get some of the hostages released and that they may not adhere to the ceasefire for long. Sadly, my fears were warranted.

The US continues to supply Israel with weapons and the political cover in the UN. Which raises the question: If Joe Biden deserved the title “Genocide Joe,” shall we call Mr. Trump, “Don the Death Maker,” or perhaps, “Donny Death”?

In the meantime, Congress has been making strides to ensure that Americans cannot even express dissent concerning Israel’s genocide in Gaza.

The IGO Anti-Boycott Act

Several years ago, I bought a pair of Teva sandals. They were very comfortable. And they lasted a long time. So, when they finally broke, I was eager to buy another pair.

Soon after my new purchase, I was travelling through Israel-Palestine when a Palestinian citizen of Israel asked me if I knew that my sandals were made in an Israeli settlement. I said, “No.”

Now, I’m not one to boycott products—not that doing so is bad. But Israeli settlements are the number one cause of turmoil in the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.

In case you are unaware, Israeli settlements are cities built on Palestinian lands–lands that were stolen by Israel from the Palestinians–and many of the settlers are violent toward Palestinians.

Consequently, that was the last pair of Tevas I ever owned.

This week, the US Congress attempted to pass the Anti-Boycott Act. This Act would make boycotting an ally of the US (and, of course, Israel was the center of this legislation, and most assuredly the only country that the bill was aimed at prohibiting) illegal.

The basis behind the bill is that boycotts are one of the most effective means of resistance.

Now, even if you are a supporter of Israel, you might be relieved to know that the US Congress chose to respect the Constitution, and the Act was repealed.

You might not be aware, however, that other laws have already been passed.

Hit them where it hurts

One of the most effective means of protest has been boycotting. Economically incentivizing companies and entities encourages them to act in accordance with the will of the people.

The BDS movement (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions) has long been a tool used to oppose the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza for some time.

To hinder such peaceful means of protest, 38 US states have already passed legislation requiring companies that want to contract with the state to certify that they are not participating in a boycott of Israel. Of course, you can boycott the US and other countries, at least they don’t require you to acknowledge whether you are or not, but you cannot boycott Israel.

That is right, US companies have to certify that they are not involved in a boycott of another country (Israel) in order to do business with the state.

And we wonder why this country is supporting a genocide.

My question remains: Why is the church?

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