Follow the Money

On February 2nd, 2024 in Washington DC, protestors blocked streets around the Holocaust Memorial Museum. The protestors went for maximum impact; disrupt the status quo at a Jewish location. What’s next? A Sit-In at Auschwitz? These are not true progressive values. These groups have lost credibility and should not be representing grass roots social justice movements.

Some of the organizers included the Palestinian Youth Movement, Occupation Free DC, Party for Socialism and Liberation, and Maryland2Palestine. Signs held up supported Yemen and Gaza. These groups assert they are not anti-semitic, they publicly say they are not anti-Jewish. They state that they are against Israel and Israel’s policies. So why protest a Holocaust Memorial Museum? Modern Israel became a State in 1948, 3 years after WW2 and the Holocaust ended.

Follow the money.

Yemeni Houthis officially call for ‘Death to America, death to Israel, Curse the Jews.’ Some or quite a few of the protestors, especially the leadership, have not publicly condemned the atrocities committed in Israel on October 7th after the ceasefire in place was broken by Hamas. They also have not demanded the hostages be released.

When you protest at a Holocaust Memorial Museum when another Holocaust has happened to another predominantly Jewish population, your main intention must be to inflict more terror, trauma, turmoil, division, and hate. Who pays your bills?

Follow the money.

When you search about funding for these groups, something called the WESPAC Foundation comes up. Some of the founders of this group have posted past social media posts where they want Israel ‘wiped off the map.’ The official web site talks about Israel and genocide and ethnic cleansing. WESPAC is short for Westchester County People’s Action Committee. Nothing condemns Hamas, taking of hostages, or mass rape committed on October 7th.

The WESPAC Foundation is based out of White Plains New York. Though their public facing non-profit work seems focused on several social justice issues, the vast majority of their money goes to funding anti Israel activities, including protests and BDS activities on college campuses. 

There is another social justice funding network called the Cultures of Resistance Network, and even more lefty influencers online under the umbrella name of WokeKindergarten. There are many more. Most of these groups are receiving public and tax payer funds to supposedly work on American social justice issues and issues that are critical for many communities. In reality the majority of their focus is about anti Israel activities, including spreading propaganda. 

The current political climate is seeing professors and politicians silenced, threatened, and forced to resign. Forced resignations happening to anyone speaking out on anything remotely Jewish related. In turn pro Palestinian voices who truly want peace in the region are not immune to the hate either.

The ADL Anti-Defamation League) has been critically reporting on a lot of these groups who also are involved with BDS (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions) activities.

These groups are not protesting what is happening in Ukraine. No one is protesting what Russia helped do to Syria. They aren’t protesting the Iranian regime when it kills its own people for speaking up. 

My main question to the organizers of the protest in DC is this: Why did you protest outside the Holocaust Memorial Museum in the capital of the United States if you hate Israel?

I know the answer. We all know the answer. There is no need for any of these groups to answer.

The disingenuous answer we all know reminds me of when some fundamentalist Christian groups protested when I requested city halls across Contra Costa County in the San Francisco Bay Area raise Pride flags during Pride month. 

I was the Executive Director of the Rainbow Community Center, an LGBTQ Community Center that served the entire County then. I was also part of the Executive board of the Lambda Democratic Club (LGBTQ Democratic Club). 

When the Christian protestors confronted me outside Antioch California’s City Hall after a contentious public meeting, one woman said with a smile on her face that she ‘loved me’ (me being the sinner) but that ‘homosexuality is a sin’ (you know, love the sinner, hate the sin routine). 

Then she took it one step further by informing me that ‘the rainbow belongs to G-d.’ I didn’t laugh in her face, but this is the altered reality and ‘alternative facts’ era we find ourselves in. 

In other words, the far left loves to hate Israel and proudly proclaim they are anti Zionist, but supposedly they still love the Jews. So when protests happen in front of the Holocaust Memorial Museum, Jew loving should be clear because the protests are only about Israel’s response in Gaza right? 

Except that it’s not a Jew loving act to protest Israel in front of a Holocaust Memorial. This was calculated and someone made the decision and everyone else joined in lock step. The signs were specific about Yemen and Gaza, nothing about releasing the hostages, Hamas surrendering, or demanding that Hamas stick to a ceasefire.

The far left accepts anti-Zionists as the good Jews. Otherwise you are a bad Jew. We all know what happens to bad Jews.

Every non-profit should be held to the same standard and reveal funding sources as well as tax info about where funds are spent. Any foundation receiving public funding, including tax payer funds, should be required to be transparent. Any protest group targeting a Jewish location and Jewish people do not represent progressive values. 

Jackie Bruckman

February 10th 2024