[The following statement was issued by the Association for Middle East Women's Studies Statement of Support with the People of Palestine in response to the ongoing genocide of Gaza perpetrated by the state of Israel.]
AMEWS stands in full and unconditional solidarity with the Palestinian people in Gaza and demands an immediate cessation of Israeli genocidal violence. If the impending catastrophe is not stopped immediately, not only Palestinian but also Israeli civilians will pay the terrible price.
AMEWS denounces US government support of Israeli violence that targets Palestinian civilians, primarily women and children and calls for international condemnation of the forced march of one million Palestinians, for many of whom this represents their second forced march, the first being when they were expelled from their homes in 1948.
AMEWS protests US media disinformation that dehumanizes Palestinians and blames them for the violence inflicted on them. A long history of settler colonialism, occupation, and persecution of the Palestinian people shapes today’s crisis. This history must be understood and not erased.
AMEWS insists that the Palestinians have the human right to freedom, resistance, and an independent state and demands international condemnation of the forced expulsion of one million Palestinians who have nowhere to go.
AMEWS calls for the robust enforcement of BDS and condemns the escalating intimidation of students and academics in solidarity with Palestine in the United States.