stan van houcke: Rabbi Joseph Berman

vrijdag 18 september 2015

Rabbi Joseph Berman

Rabbi Joseph Berman, JVP info@jewishvoiceforpeace.org

Netanyahu couldn't stop the Iran Deal, but he wants a consolation prize: more weapons from the U.S. government. Stand up and say no.

Dear Stan-

First, the good news: We won!
Thanks to JVP supporters like you, countless grassroots groups, and millions across the U.S. and around the world, AIPAC’s reckless attempts to block the Iran Deal have failed. The proposed deal is going to move forward, and it’s a major victory for peace and diplomacy.
After over 60 Members of Congress skipped Netanyahu’s speech on Capitol Hill —inspired in part by JVP’s major on-the-ground campaign — AIPAC and their far-right allies and mega-donors went all in to defeat the Iran Deal.
And we beat them anyway.
21,517 JVP supporters contacted Congress to take action. We contacted every single Senator and Representative -- and 5,000 JVP members from outside the US signed an open letter of support to President Obama. JVP members across the U.S. met in-person with 45 Members of Congress.
We spoke out at demonstrations, vigils, and town halls. We amplified our voice in the press and on social media to highlight Jewish support for the deal. And it worked. At midnight last night, the clock ran out for Congress to block the deal. It’s going to happen.
This really is an amazing victory. I now hear people say it on Capitol Hill all the time: “AIPAC isn’t invincible anymore.”
Now, that bad news.
AIPAC is trying to bounce back from their defeat by pushing a new Memorandum of Understanding that will send even more weapons to Israel -- on our dime! They’re proposing to send advanced weaponry, including specialized equipment that could be used to attack Iran as well as more weapons that will be used for human rights abuses against Palestinians.
Which is why we need you to sign our joint petition to President Obama:

The United States should not reward Israel with more weapons after Israel and its lobby, AIPAC, attempted to scuttle your administration’s nuclear deal with Iran.

This isn’t a game show. Israel doesn’t deserve a consolation prize for fighting against diplomacy and losing. And Palestinians shouldn’t be the losers in the deal with Iran. We need to send a strong and loud message: no weapons for Israel.
That’s why we’ve partnered with a handful of grassroots organizations that fight for peace and justice to launch our petition on noweapons4israel.org.
Let’s capitalize on this moment. Let’s show President Obama that we won’t tolerate more giveaways to Israel’s military. Let’s show Congress that we’re still paying attention. Let’s show AIPAC that they’re not going to win. And let’s make it absolutely clear: thousands of Jews and allies supported the Iran deal, and thousands of Jews and allies say no to giving Israel weapons that will be used to violate Palestinian human rights.
Sign the petition now.
This is a new moment, but we can’t get complacent. We can’t let AIPAC snatch victory on Netanyahu’s behalf from the jaws of defeat. We need to make our voices heard.

Add your name right now -- Palestinians should not be the losers in the deal with Iran.

L’Shalom - towards peace,
Rabbi Joseph Berman
Government Affairs Liaison