Daily Archives: July 3, 2022

In a previous speech, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced himself as the countrys seventh king. He was referring to his Orthodox mothers performance of divination for him when he was young. This self-presentation strongly brings back to mind the history of Ethiopias Christian imperialism.

Since the Oromo protests that lasted from 2014 to 2018, Ethiopia rapidly evolved disobediently. In 2018, Ethiopias first Protestant Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn resigned, and in March 2018, Abiy Ahmed succeeded him. Abiy was a young Oromo leader and the Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Fronts (EPRDF) former surveillance head.

Abiy became Ethiopias first Evangelical prime minister. He was enthusiastically described by many Ethiopians, particularly Evangelicals, as messiah, the new Moses, or King David, who would save Ethiopia. He comprehended that he couldnt evolve as the seventh king of Ethiopia without the buy-in of Ethiopias Evangelical doorkeepers, so he brought them into his close circle.

He publicly supported extremists in the Orthodox Church, like Daniel Kibret, a well-known Orthodox scholar in Mahibere Kidusan or the communion of saints. This strong group is a right-wing Orthodox juvenile campaign that aims to restore the Orthodox Churchs historical hegemony. Unsurprisingly, Daniel is also famous for his bigotry against Muslims and Protestants. However, many Protestant leaders acknowledged his power and embraced him. After Abiy selected him as his personal counselor, Daniel gave a textbook genocidal speech calling for exterminating his Tigrayan enemies, describing them as weed and devils. Daniel is now a member of the Ethiopian parliament.

The Orthodox kingdoms starless red, yellow, and green flag was revived and became a fierce sign of imperial homesickness. This Christian nationalist flag is everywhere in Orthodox churches and is a reason for a painful clash in Ethiopia Today. A prominent Ethiopian activist said that multiple Oromos consider it a symbol of domination and mastery.

Evangelicalisms rapid growth is robust in Oromia and the southern regions of Ethiopia, where many have felt crushed and impoverished by Ethiopias Orthodox kingdom. This campaign has injected the wealth gospel into the famous Ethiopian civilization. Its principle asserts that if you unquestioningly consider your spiritual leader and confirm it by charity money, God will give you health and wealth. Ethiopia now has a booming industry of modern prophets and motivational lecturers promising wealth. In multiple ways, Abiy himself is a thriving speculator. He also replaced the old EPRDF with his new Prosperity Party, whose spiritual overtones should not be skipped.

According to the Ethiopian constitution, (Church and state should be separated). Abiy, however, started an umbrella organization (the Ethiopian Evangelical Council) that contained a group of 15 well-known Christian influencers. Abiy raised his intended vision to 400 Christian leaders at the Palace.

Abiy said: The constitution says church and state should be separated, but that doesnt mean they shouldnt work together.

Gaining a Membership in this party has accrued lucrative business deals, land grants, and positions in political power. When Abiy was questioned about his intentions for the council, Abiy laughed and replied: That is a complicated question to answer. You want a strong institution. But I intend to expand the kingdom of God.

The church is not a democracy! What you know doesnt matter in Ethiopia. Who you know is everything, said Betta Mengistu, a founding father of Ethiopian Pentecostalism and a key player in Abiys Ethiopian Evangelical Council. Currently, these Christian princes know Abiy, and wealth appears to be streaming.

Christian expansionism vitalized the dominionist and seven mountain faith in Ethiopia. This political belief encourages the idea that if Christians can control essential sectors like politics, business, and culture, the community can be seized for Christ. This is the Pentecostal similarity to Orthodox imperialism.

Evangelicals then prepared a confidential procedure manuscript for asserting impact in the postponed 2021 federal election, and some well-known Evangelicals triumphed in public office. The dominionist paradigm created momentum within the Prosperity Party.

After earning access to privilege and authority at the Palace, few Christian leaders have publicly admitted this horrible brutality is occurring. Some hold scapegoated Islam, fueled Christian nationalist conspiracy theories, defended the civil war in the north, which incidentally pits mainly Orthodox Tigrayans against mostly Orthodox Amharas, and others depicted the conflict as Gods will, said an Ethiopian researcher who spoke anonymously.

Today, Ethiopia seems hauntingly like a Zemene Mesafint reduced spiritual Era of the Princes. This recognized expression in Ethiopian historiography harkens to the era of extreme disruption between 1706 and 1855. During this time, restricted princes struggled against one another for imperial control and burst the country.

A civil war ensued in the north for 18 months. Tens of thousands of individuals have been slain, nearly a million Ethiopians encounter starvation, and millions more are displaced. The roots of future wars have already been planted.

Brutality is ruining different regions of the country, including Oromia, Benishangul-Gumuz, and elsewhere. Slaughter, mass rapes, and other horrors are becoming heartbreakingly regular headlines. Muslims were slaughtered, and mosques were burned down purportedly by Christian extremists in the historic imperial Orthodox capital of Gondar. The media is soaked with polarizing enemy speech, demonization, and hate. African civil society organizations alert that violence on the ranking of the Rwandan genocide could still explode.

Prominent Evangelical leaders demand that what the world genuinely sees is a recovery of Ethiopias holy greatness. Abiys dehumanizing lectures against his Tigrayan enemies as a cancer, hyena, and weed who must be destroyed.

Ethiopians and observers of Ethiopian politics may smoothly agree that Ethiopias main worst bad habit is indeed state violence. Every Ethiopian administration has operated it as the primary means of holding power. It has become so wired into the perspective and institutional tradition of the Ethiopian state. No modification of time and circumstances has been able to change it.

Solomon Dersso, the former chairperson of the African Unions Commission on Human and Peoples Rights, has written trenchantly.

Christian leaders are in the front row cheering and holding their privileged or intimidated silence. Ethiopian history, however, also has a juvenile line of protest. Abba Estifanos died in jail for publicly critiquing the dictatorial violence of Emperor Zera Yacob in the 15th century. The Muslim party Dimtsachin Yisemas Let Our Voices Be Heard! became the first nonviolent religious rally campaign in current Ethiopia against the government intervening in religious leadership in the 21st century. Abune Mathias, leader of the Orthodox Church, has courageously called out against genocidal violence in Ethiopia Today.

This tradition can be resumed today for an inclusive reconciliation of Ethiopia. Of course, it needs powerful ethical bravery. It demands condemning all forms of religious domination, divesting insider privilege and authority, and renouncing loyalty to Abiy and other rulers who create their thrones on religious arrogance. There is no time to waste.

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Ethiopia's garment of religion is the best cloak for power and oppression - Daily News Egypt

Senator Ron Johnsons political shenanigans have ranged from the absurd (like when he said it may be true that COVID vaccines cause AIDS only to later deny ever believing that) to the potentially illegal (coordinating an effort to serve up fake Donald Trumpsupporting electors to Vice President Mike Pence, allegedly in an effort to overturn Joe Bidens victory in 2020). Democrats are amplifying these issues, but the strategy to defeat the incumbent Wisconsin senator also has another clear target: his record on women. The Supreme Court decision overruling the landmark Roe v. Wade Fridayand Wisconsins 173-year-old state law banning abortions now in effecthas the potential to make this strategy more politically potent than ever, making Johnson a clear test case in Democrats promise to make womens rights a winning issue at the ballot box.

Johnson is an easy target in that respect. The two-term senator said he didnt view the repeal of Roe v. Wade as a huge threat to womens health and that things would be fine. He said anyone who does not like Wisconsins abortion laws can move, has advocated for a federal abortion ban after 20 weeksdespite arguing that the matter was a states issueand supported a Mississippi law to ban abortions after 15 weeks. The Wisconsin Democratic Party regularly blasts out fact sheets highlighting Johnsons work to strip reproductive rights. The states Democratic candidates for Senate have all targeted Johnsons record on women and reproductive rights across various mediums, including paid campaign TV ads (Sarah Godlewski cut an ad outside the Supreme Court in Washington), social media posts, and official statements.

Its a strategy seemingly based on lessons learned from the last three election cycles. In 2018 Democrats energized their base to deliver Tony Evers the governorship, despite Trump winning the state two years prior; in 2020, Biden managed to flip the state from red to blue by siphoning off key votes in Milwaukee suburbsWaukesha, Ozaukee, and Washington counties notable among themand chipping away at historically landslide margins in traditional Republican strongholds like the Mequon, Elm Grove, and Brookfield suburbs. Alex Lasry, a Milwaukee Bucks executive running in the Democratic Senate primary, stressed in a phone call that to win the state, Democrats need to replicate the victories of Barack Obama, Senator Tammy Baldwin, Evers, and Joe Biden by paying attention to places that Democrats neglect and Republicans take for granted.

Republicans concede this could work; one GOP strategist who has run numerous campaigns in Wisconsin explained that Johnson cant win by plucking from the MAGA playbook alone. The people who are going to walk through walls to vote so that they can vote for Ron Johnson, theyre gonna show up anyway. But that isnt gonna be enough to get him elected, the strategist said. They either have to figure out a way to make him passable to those people that probably would vote for Ron Johnson, but might not.

Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barness campaign for Senate said it received more individual donations on Friday than any other single day in the campaign, including its launch and the day Johnson announced his reelection campaign. Lasrys campaign said it has experienced a notable uptick in online campaign donations. And Friday through Sunday, Godlewski, the only woman candidate in the Democratic primary for the Senate seat, had her best-performing fundraising days since the start of her campaigneach day outstripping the previous. The ruling that came out Friday was a very dramatic moment in the fact that now people in Wisconsin have fewer rights than they did even last week, Godlewski told Vanity Fair. I think thats gonna be a centerpiece because we know Ron Johnson; this is exactly what he wanted.

Barnes and Lasry echoed this sentiment. People are frustrated. Women are incredibly frustratedas they should beseeing their rights being taken away in real time. Things that were fought and won 50 years agoto have to go through those same exact fights, people are fired up, especially maybe those who may not have thought they were political before, understanding just how deeply involved politics is in folks daily lives, Barnes said.

We see what happens when Republicans take over, they continue to make sure that they take away rights for women, Lasry said.

Wisconsin Democrats feel they have a credible case to make against Johnson when it comes to his record on women. In addition to his position on Roe, Johnson has suggested that single mothers choose to have more children in order to receive greater welfare assistance. He also suggested that assisting single mothers with government aid turned them into dependents and that mothers on welfare assistance should work in childcare centers as an alternative solution. He is really a true believer when it comes to the oppression of women and disrespecting women. Hes been doing it for a long time here in his political career, Melissa Baldauff, a Democratic strategist based in Wisconsin, told me. (Johnsons campaign did not respond to a request for comment.)

Robyn Vining, a Democratic member of the Wisconsin State Assembly, relied on women voters in 2018, when she flipped a longtime red seat previously held by the likes of former Republican governor Scott Walker in 2018 and held on to it in 2020. We had women who had never knocked doors before, out knocking doors. We had women writing hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of postcards, Vining said. It really matters. Women are fed up. Theyre sick and tired of being targeted, of being unrepresented.

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Women Are Fed Up: Democrats See Ron Johnsons Abortion Record as Their Path to Victory - Vanity Fair

Tensions are rising in Tajikistan as the incidents of violence have been worsening in the past few weeks, with at least 25 people killed this past week by security forces in the autonomous region of Gorno-Badakashan (GBOA). There has been conflict between the central government and the Pamiri, who are the only anti-government protestors who take to the streets. The police reported that there was a planned attack on the police forces, yet witnesses described the man being shot without prior violence.

This conflict is no new concept in the central Asia country as it has existed since their independence in 1991 from the Soviet Union. There were tensions between supporters of government and opposition that developed into civil war. Ever since, there have been phases of violence, nonviolent opposition, oppression, and overall conflict that stem from a deterioration of human rights. Peoples freedoms are massively limited, such as freedom of expression, blocked access to critical public government information, targeting of journalists, extreme violence against LGBTQ groups, and freedom of religion. Specific strands of Islam, such as Salafism, have been banned, and individuals are regularly arrested. With a multitude of rights being impacted, protests are numerous, yet they are consistently met with violence and no substantial change.

There are also significant military issues between the bordering country, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan over resources. With limited accountability for the violence and death that comes from this conflict, it alters not only the positionality between the two but also the safety of the people in each country.

More specifically, in 2022, the parents of men who government actors have killed are calling on international forces such as the UN to hold the Tajikistan government accountable. According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), there was a protest rally of several hundred people in the town of Khorugi Bolo demanding the resignation of two head leaders, Alisher Mirzonabot and Rizo Nazarzoda, the removal of checkpoints in the regional center, and lifting the persecution of Badakhan residents. They were met with rubber bullets and tear gas and no promise of change by authorities.

With these violations recognized in the HRWs 2022 evaluation of their rights record, it is well known that the situation continues to worsen. These violations persist based on the violent response of state actors to active protests of change and the inability of President Rahmon to accept aid from sources such as the UN. Recommendations are made with international urgency, but there is no recognition or response to change.

With the continuing conflict, it is important to allow the protest to occur safely as a right to assemble and advocate for changes that the people being severely impacted want. However, it is the role of international actors to apply more compelling urgency when people are dying. The people are fighting for human rights, and they need support before the violence persists to more drastic measures.

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Tensions are Escalating in the Autonomous Region of Tajikistan - The Organization for World Peace

Since 2021, hard-won womens reproductive rights and bodily autonomy have been rolled back in the US in an alarming fashion. With state bans on abortion past as little as six weeks as was passed in Texas on September 1, 2021 and now the Supreme Courts overturning of the 1973 Roe v Wade ruling, it is easy to imagine that we have slipped and fallen into a Handmaids Tale-style dystopia.

As such misogynist ideology becomes entrenched, it is natural to feel hopeless. A recent surge in activist TikToks suggests, however, a way forward. People have been pairing a sample from the song Paris by US electro duo The Chainsmokers with the hashtag #ifwegodownthenwegodowntogether, messages of solidarity and crucial information.

My research shows that people often think that activism requires a certain type of direct action. But such narrow definitions of activism prevent people from taking part. They also typically harm those who face the biggest structural disadvantages and related barriers to getting involved in direct action.

Instead, remembering that doing something is always better than doing nothing and widening our definition of what activism can be is helpful. Here is a non-exhaustive list of ideas of how we can support our sisters across the pond and further the global fight for womens reproductive rights.

Research shows that the more people are informed about an issue, the more it is possible to shift dominant perspectives. The idea is to destigmatise talking about abortion, so that it becomes normalised as an issue relating to womens health and reproductive rights. This reduces the stigma around abortion and keeps the issue in the public sphere, demonstrating how the personal is political.

Social media has repeatedly been shown to be a good way of sharing information, whether that is via memes that distil key philosophical arguments for abortion into bite-size graphics and words or through linking to news articles, petitions, feminist charities and campaigns.

Having conversations with friends and family can be just as instrumental. Raising awareness and destigmatising abortion enables us to better fight for womens reproductive rights so that they are not hidden out of sight and easier to attack.

I was part of a pro-choice group in Nottingham, UK, which counters anti-abortion activism outside of hospitals and clinics. We positioned our bodies to block out the anti-abortion messages and provided a friendly face and chaperone for any woman seeking an abortion. We also provided leaflets, directing women to neutral pregnancy and abortion advice services such as the British Pregnancy Advisory Service.

Social media can be a good place to look for such local groups but if you dont find one, team up with some friends and start it yourself. Thats how the Nottingham group began ten years ago and it is still going strong with nearly 1,000 local members. Grassroots campaigning from social housing activist group Focus E15 Mothers to the New Era Tenants Association, which fought to keep tenants homes has a direct impact on individuals and can mobilise the wider public, having a significant impact on society and politics.

Anyone can sign parliamentary petitions or write to their local MP to ask that they support womens reproductive rights (find your MP here). There is an all-party parliamentary group on sexual and reproductive health in the UK, comprising MPs and peers who raise awareness in parliament of these issues: you can sign up for news and events here. If youre unsure of how to formulate such a letter, charities often provide template letters for contacting MPs.

You can also sign up to mailing lists of feminist charities and organisations, such as Filia, to be notified of any relevant government consultations. Research shows that citizen involvement in the parliamentary process can affect policy.

During lockdown, a temporary measure was put in place by the UK government, allowing the provision of at-home medical abortion pills. Feminist campaigning saw this crucial service extended: on March 30 2022, the UK parliament voted in favour of amending the Health and Care bill, making telemedicine for early medical abortions permanent in England and Wales.

Grassroots organisations and campaigns often depend entirely on volunteers and private donations for their existence. Fundraising enables campaigns such as Abortion Rights, the UKs only national grassroots pro-choice campaign, to organise protests, maintain pressure on the government to support womens reproductive rights.

Abortion funds provide practical financial support to help women access abortion. You can donate to the National Network of Abortion Funds to support those in the US and to Abortion Without Borders to support women in Europe.

Protest marches have long been a way of expressing dissent on everything from pollution and political oppression to war and racism. They have also consistently been a means of showing solidarity for women, from the suffragist marches of the early 20th century to the 2017 Womens March on Washington.

Four years prior to Roe v Wade, in 1969, radical feminist group Redstockings held what they called an abortion speakout in New York City, which saw women come forward to talk about their experiences of illegal abortion. These speakout events spread across the US in response to government hearings where most of the politicians speaking about abortion at the time were male. American political scientist Erica Chenoweth highlights how fruitful this kind of non-violent civil resistance can be.

It is vital to continue to speak out and show solidarity to our sisters in the US. We must also continue to fight to protect our right to protest and to prevent the encroachment of similarly regressive laws in the UK.

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Five ways you can get involved in fighting for women's reproductive rights - The Conversation

A gathering of thousands of Afghan clerics and elders has ended with a call for international recognition, but silence on the countrys ban on secondary education for girls.

Nearly a year since their surprise military triumph across Afghanistan, not a single country has officially recognised the Taliban as the legitimate government.

Diplomats say the ban on girls education is one of the main reasons the Taliban are still international outcasts. It is resented by many in the movements ranks, who want their own daughters to be educated.

Classes were set to restart in March, until a last-minute reversal, apparently on the orders of hardliners close to the supreme leader of the movement, Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada.

The all-male group of religious and community leaders spent three days discussing the future of the country, largely united under Taliban rule after decades of civil war. There had been hope they might offer political incentives or cover for the Taliban leadership to reverse course on the ban. But only two out of more than 4,500 participants called for the reopening of secondary schools for girls, Afghanistans Tolo television channel reported.

And in their final communique, the clerics made only passing reference to the need for religious and modern education and to respect the rights of women. It did not clarify if those rights include schooling.

Its hard to get too excited about vague references to education and womens rights at the end of the Talibans big meeting when the Taliban previously made a very clear promise to reopen all schools only to break that promise, said Heather Barr, associate womens rights director at Human Rights Watch. Donors, diplomats and the UN need to act as though this ban is likely permanent Its far past time for the international community to respond to their gender apartheid in ways more tangible than statements of deep concern.

Akhundzada came to Kabul from his base in the southern city of Kandahar to address the gathering. It was his first known trip to the capital since Taliban fighters seized it last August.

He lashed out at foreign demands on the government, as the UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet called for an end to systematic oppression of women in the country. Women are blocked from working in most sectors outside health and education, require a male guardian for long-distance travel and have been ordered to cover their faces in public.

The meeting was closed to media but in an audio recording Akhundzada, a hardliner whose son was a suicide bomber, warned the international community against interfering in Afghanistan.

Thank God, we are now an independent country. [Foreigners] should not give us their orders, it is our system and we have our own decisions, he said, according to the official Bakhtar news agency.

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Meeting of Afghan clerics ends with silence on education for girls - The Guardian

When I hear some Americans talk about Palestine and Israel, I marvel at how effective the campaign to project a fictional image of that region is, even on liberals, progressives, and leftists. Then, if I must, I read Tom Friedmans articles on the matter and despair at how many people think there is even a hint of reality in them.

But on Tuesday, Friedman outdid himself, topping even his fantasy fluff piece on Mohammed bin Salman in 2017. Friedman painted the past year in Israelthe first Netanyahu-free year since 2008as an icon of democracy, where Israeli Jews and Palestinian citizens of Israel danced together under the blue and white flag, in harmony and happiness.

It is a contemptible piece of fiction which erases apartheid, blames Palestinians for their own ongoing oppression, and praises those who would abandon their cousins under occupation. On top of all that, even if not quite as egregious, Friedman displays a comical ignorance of Israeli politics, a bit of knowledge you would think would be a basic qualification for the New York Times leading Israel apologist.

Friedman wastes no time by launching a flawed analogy between Donald Trumps coup attempt and Benjamin Netanyahus various machinations to remain in office. He warns that the win at any cost mentality could tear apart democracy in both the United States and Israel.

Typically, Friedman ignores the fact that both of those countries, though having certain democratic structures, also have significant anti-democratic systemsapartheid in Israels case, and various limitations that resist democracy like the electoral college and the Senate in the United Statesthat maintain various forms of economic, social, racial, gender, and other discriminations.

Worse, Friedman personalizes the anti-democratic forces in both countries. Contrary to his formulation, Trump in the United States and Netanyahu in Israel are symbols of anti-democratic forces, they do not embody them. Indeed, many of those same forces have turned against the strongmen in both cases, as they value the system, not the particular leader.

Here in the United States, we are witnessing a whole array of people testifying and sitting on the January 6th committee who continue to support Trumps policies, they just dont want him. Similarly, while Israels biggest party, Likud, is keeping Netanyahu at its head, he is being challenged from within that party and from outside it by far-right nationalists, including the outgoing Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Justice Minister Gideon Saar, as well as by more conventional rightwing figures like Yair Lapid and Benny Gantz.

None of this registers with Friedman, who fails to see the irony when he describes his dream U.S. governmentone that includes, Joe Biden, Mitt Romney, Liz Cheney, Larry Hogan, Lisa Murkowski, Charlie Baker, retired admiral Bill McRaven, Joe Manchin, Amy Klobuchar, Mike Bloomberg, Jim Clyburn and Michelle Lujan Grisham. Its a bipartisan group who all have conservative politics, a union of Never-Trumpers and the farthest right wing of the Democratic party, one that is entirely filled with the wealthy and their servants, whose policies are responsible for most of the mess we have been in economically, politically, socially, and internationally for all of American history.

This center-right paradise, according to Friedman, is what Israel has had for the past year. He lauds the recently-collapsed Bennett-Lapid government for passing the first national budget in three years. This was much less of an accomplishment than Friedman imagines, although it is true that it was not certain that the government could do it. But there hasnt been a budget because there hadnt been a government for three years. It was Israels political chaos that created this dysfunction, and it remained in place because even the Bennett-Lapid coalition was based on just one principle: anyone but Netanyahu. Just like the Democrats here in the United States who run almost entirely on Not being Donald Trump.

Friedman portrays Bennett as less right-wing than Netanyahu, an absurd characterization of Bennett, who is, himself, a religious supporter of settlers who has always held to those far-right beliefs. He made the compromises he was forced to in order to get Netanyahu out of the prime ministers office, nothing more. Its fair to say that Bennett does not share Netanyahus affinity for bribes, and shady deals with media moguls, and the various other acts that have brought indictments down on his head. But Bennett had always attacked Netanyahu from the right before, and his political positions have not changed. He merely made a deal with a variety of parties who had one thing in common: anyone but Netanyahu.

Friedman gives the impression that, with Netanyahu gone, the Israeli government was more reasonable, compromising, even liberal. But this was not at all the case. The government was largely paralyzed while in office, but one thing it could and did do was consistently reinforce the apartheid regime.

But Friedman really gets into gear when he starts talking about the Raam party, headed by Monsour Abbas.

He starts by stating, Perhaps more than anything else, the unity coalition was able to demonstrate that Israeli Jews and Arabs can calmly govern together a historic breakthrough.

While its certainly true that Raam was the first Arab party to be part of an Israeli government coalition, it was hardly an example of Arabs and Jews calmly working as one. As Raam sat in the government, the government passed a law forbidding Palestinian citizens of Israel to marry Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza Strip. When it passed, Ayelet Shaked who is well-known for her racism, Naftali Bennetts Interior Minister, and now designated by Bennett to lead their Yamina party tweeted, A Jewish and democratic State 1; A state of all of its citizens 0.

Another Yamina Knesset member, Nir Orbach, quit the government because it included Arabs. So much for calmly governing together.

But this doesnt trouble Friedman, who dismisses the larger Joint Lista coalition party consisting of two Palestinian parties and the Palestinian-Jewish-Communist party, Hadashas irrelevant, although it is their significant success in the Knesset that, given all other parties unwillingness to work with them, is a key factor in the political paralysis that has gripped Israeli elections for years. The Joint List has six seats, Raam has four. Seems relevant.

Nothing changed for Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza with Raam in government. The siege on Gaza was as tight as ever, and if anything, Bennett was more aggressive even than Netanyahu on the West Bank, especially in East Jerusalem, with a significant rise in Israeli aggression at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound, regular raids, pushing forward with evictions in areas like Sheikh Jarrah and Masafer Yatta. And, of course, there was the recent murder of Shireen Abu Akleh.

Friedman praises Mansour Abbas and Raam for sitting in the government with Bennett and other right-wing leaders from the center-right Lapid to the much farther right Gideon Saar. Friedman writes, Abbas basically told the other Israeli Arab parties to take a hike. He would play in the center of Israeli politics. Although some members of his base resisted, Abbas drew support from many Israeli Arabs fed up with the corruption and drift within the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and the brutality and incompetence of Hamas in Gaza. They wanted to focus on their lives in Israel.

This is a fictional account. Raam, Abbas party, is a very conservative one. It gets support from the religious and most conservative parts of the Palestinian community inside Israel, especially among Bedouin. The dire conditions they often face within Israel naturally causes them to focus more the situation of Palestinian citizens of Israel, although they are still concerned about Israeli actions against Palestinians under occupation and are particularly sensitive to Israels behavior regarding religious sites in Jerusalem.

Abbas didnt really change that. What he did was depart from his always uneasy alliance with the more left-wing tendencies in the Joint List (of which Raam was once a member). It was the desperation of the Zionist parties that led to Raam being invited into the government, and even being courted by Netanyahu to support his bloc (though not as a full partner).

Abbas joined a government that was harshly cracking down on Palestinians, and simply stayed silent, with the exception of his response to Israels attack on Muslim worshippers at al-Aqsa Mosque. That was too much for even Abbas to ignore, and he paused Raams participation in the government for a brief period.

This was not a grand compromise. Raam was able to win some additional funding for Arab municipalities, including recognition of three Bedouin villages (which means they can now get municipal services) and the upgrading of a Druze town to city status. But these came at the price of Raams silence in the face of expanding apartheid. Friedman naturally loves this.

In fact, Friedman wrote, Abbas drew support from many Israeli Arabs fed up with the corruption and drift within the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and the brutality and incompetence of Hamas in Gaza. Again, this is fictional. Abbas himself may have little concern about Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza, but his constituents, even if they are more focused than others on their own situation within Israel, remain very concerned and many have been critical of Raams silence.

The discomfort that much of the Bennett-Lapid coalition had with sitting with even this accommodating Arab party was one of the main reasons the weak coalition was living on borrowed time from the beginning. A unique set of circumstancesthe even division between pro- and anti-Netanyahu blocs, the ability to unify a disparate set of parties around ousting Netanyahu and nothing else, the ongoing isolation of the Joint Listcreated a situation where a desperate Israeli group, after three years of futile elections, brought in an Arab party. It was unprecedented, but given the instability Raams presence caused, probably didnt set a precedent, as Friedman imagines.

Friedmans fantasy normalized Israeli apartheid in typical fashion: by pretending it isnt there. He contends that democracy is on the ballot in both the U.S. and Israel, and the way forward is to elect center-right coalitions that do nothing but maintain a status quo that is based on discrimination, racism, inequality, and elitism. Otherwise, he warns, the far right is the only alternative.

Its a false choice. In Israel, the reality is that, when it comes to the Palestinians and Israels apartheid system, the mainstream supports these policies. As we just saw with Bennett and Lapid, getting rid of the authoritarian leaves the government paralyzed except for reinforcing apartheid, which is broadly supported. In the U.S., the majority supports racial justice, greater economic equality and opportunity, womens rights, and many other things that are disappearing even under Democratic leadership.

Friedmans center-right coalitions are his favored groups not because they promote liberal democracy, but because theyre immoderate, conservative coalitions that support regressive policies. They just do it without the blatantly autocratic leaders they just shed.

Over the last year, weve made a conscious commitment to our readers and the entire Palestinian freedom movement:to build a newsroom for all of Palestine.

As we welcome our two new Palestine-based staff, Faris Giacaman and Mariam Barghouti, will you contribute to make sure Mondoweiss can back their work 100%?

Between now and July 3rd, a generous donor has pledged to match all gifts, up to $50,000.

This summer fundraising campaign is going to make a huge difference in how we cover the next big uprisings, the place of Palestinian rights in U.S. politics, and the grassroots movement building an unstoppable campaign for justice.

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Tom Friedman normalizes apartheid in the 'New York Times' - Mondoweiss

North Texans spent the weekend grappling with the U.S. Supreme Courts decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Some took to the streets to protest, chanting abortion is healthcare and hands off my body.

Others rejoiced over the ruling from their church pews.

At First Baptist Dallas on Sunday, the congregation celebrated the Supreme Court's decision and Independence Day.

Folks in the pews sang God Bless the U.S.A with the churchs choir and musical guest Lee Greenwood.

As the stage erupted with fireworks, the crowds cheers echoed across the church. Known as Freedom Sunday, the congregations Independence Day celebration also included stunt men dropping from the ceiling dressed as armed service members.

Dr. Robert Jeffress, the senior pastor at First Baptist Dallas, called the Supreme Court's ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization a victory.

This is not a victory for Republicans or conservatives, said Jeffress, also a Fox News contributor who has close ties to former President Donald Trump. This is a victory for the millions of yet to be born children who will now have a right to live.

Jeffress said the courts decision was a direct result of voting for Trump. On Sunday, he praised Christians for coming together to elect Trump, who nominated three of the Supreme Court Justices that voted to overturn Roe v Wade.

Waving American flags, the church members roared and rose from their pews when Jeffress thanked God for Trump.

Mike Deahl was in the crowd. The corporate attorney said the courts decision had nothing to do with religion. He said Roe was a stretch because abortion isnt explicitly mentioned in the constitution.

Roe versus Wade was a bad decision, Deahl said. And so, I think from a constitutional law standpoint, I wasn't surprised that it was overturned.

Still, Deahl said he understands why there were protests this weekend, even if its hard for him to comprehend why the protesters feel as though their rights have been threatened.

Several protesters who felt their rights were threatened by the courts decision gathered in Fort Worth at the steps of the Tarrant County Courthouse on Saturday.

Olivia Castillo is a recent graduate of Fort Worth's R.L. Paschal High School and former president of the Paschal Feminist Club, which organized the rally the day that the decision dropped. She said the politicians who made the choices that led to the fall of Roe v Wade dont represent the will of the people.

We didn't vote for these elected officials, and they're all making decisions about our bodies and it just feels unfair, Castillo said.

Castillo said just years ago she had once considered herself pro-life but her views evolved as she learned more about reproductive options.

It's not as black and white as life begins at conception. You know, you need to have empathy for the people who get pregnant, Castillo said. I think a mother really does deserve the right to choose and make the most informed decision about her body.

Zoe Seymore, another organizer of the Fort Worth rally, said her lived experience as an adoptee impacted her views on abortion.

There's a lot of like trauma associated being adopted, including like, abandonment issues and trust issues and I think it's something that I wouldn't really wish upon anyone, Seymore said. I don't think that adoption is an appropriate response to an abortion alternative.

Seymore said once the rallies end, she encourages people to vote with the November general election just a few months away.

The only way we're going to move forwards instead of go backwards if we have the right people in the government, Seymore said.

Kawana Scott, whos with the Alliance Against Racism and Political Oppression Dallas, said the politicians who chose to take away the right to an abortion will still access that privilege themselves.

Speaking at the Dallas protest she helped organize Frida evening just hours after the decision was announced Scott said that isnt fair.

You're sitting at the table eating and someone take your plate while they are eating, she said. It's sickening.

Scott, who said she's had an abortion, said she felt called to speak out for reproductive rights as a Black woman.

Black women are three times more likely to die in childbirth than white women, according to theCenters for Disease Control and Prevention. Scott said those racial inequities put women in an impossible situation.

All the burden is put on women to make sure that things like this don't happen, who don't want it, but then there's no resources put into place to make sure that we're successful in doing that, Scott said.

Following the speakers, protesters marched through downtown Dallas from Civic Garden Park to Dealey Plaza, through the West End and back to the park.

Xochitl Miranda, one of the many protesters, said theyre infuriated by the Supreme Court decision and that abortion is a human rights issue.

This is not just affecting women. This is affecting non-binary people, Miranda said. It's not just women's rights. It's all of us.

Got a tip? Email Pablo Arauz Pea atparauzpena@kera.org and Caroline Love atclove@kera.org.

Caroline Love is aReport For Americacorps member for KERA News.

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Shock. Anxiety. Elation. North Texans are confronting a new reality in the abortion rights debate - KERA News