Letter To Sen. Baldwin & Rep. Mike Gallagher: Why Did Israel & US Kill This Man's 12-Year-Old Son?
Palestinian poet speaks from hospital bed after airstrike destroys home
I sent the following letter to my congressional “representatives”. I will post any responses they might provide. — M. Taylor
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Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI):
In the daily news and casualty numbers of the ongoing US-funded Israeli bombardment of Gazan hospitals, homes, refugee camps and Israeli-mandated escape routes, it is too easy for the reality of the daily suffering to be lost in the statistics of dead and wounded.
That is why I pay attention to individual accounts of what people have gone through. It’s impossible to ignore the humanity of a grandmother mourning for her now orphaned 4 year-old granddaughter … the same age as my granddaughter.
So in that spirit, I share with you a short 6-minute video broadcast today. It is an up-close report of how your active support for this war of genocide impacts people and their children. Since your email format doesn’t permit sending link addresses, you can do a YouTube search on the following headline.
Why Did Israel Kill My Son? Palestinian Poet Speaks from Hospital Bed After Airstrike Destroys Home
Democracy Now! (11/6/23)
Gazan poet, journalist and peace activist Ahmed Abu Artema describes how he lost five members of his family, including his 12-year-old son, in an Israeli airstrike on his house on October 24. Abu Artema was seriously injured and sent _Democracy Now!_ an audio message from his hospital bed. "Israel didn't bombard my house, didn't kill my child by mistake. It's the Israeli strategy," he says. "Israel's problem is Palestinian existence itself."
Note what happened when he helped organize peaceful protests at the border wall several years ago. Israeli forces killed 200.
Fully funded by the US
All of this violence is done with our approval, funded by our tax dollars and our weapons. Disgraceful.
But what is even more disgraceful is the bipartisan support for this daily massacre. It makes me ashamed to be an American; that such crimes are perpetrated by my nation, our war profiteers and their congress.
And of course this is completely bipartisan. You walk arm-in-arm in helping fund these accelerating war crimes. Silence is consent and consent with war crimes is a war crime.
I hope at some point you find the morality and courage to stop this daily murder of innocents, including children like Ahmend’s wonderful 12 year-old son.
I will be posting this letter to my Substack for others to read.
Sincerely,
Mark Taylor
Sturgeon Bay, WI
PS: News reports today (11/6) just confirmed deaths of Gazan children has passed the 4,000 mark. Congratulations.
