Op-Ed: A Call to Action for Palestine and Darfur

This piece is part of Yellow Scene Magazine’s Opinion section. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent a reported news position. At Yellow Scene, opinion pieces speak freely, challenge assumptions, and say the quiet parts out loud.

Guest Contributor, James K of Boulder, CO

In this age of AI technology, shock media, and divisive narratives, we must view reality through a lens of caution. We are subjected to a never-ending cycle of rapid-fire news lines on TV and social media. Through it all, we must not allow ourselves to become desensitized to the harsh realities affecting our fellow humans.

Although there are topics that can be emotionally overwhelming and exhausting, we must speak! Exhaustion and pain can indeed be felt just by learning of these atrocities, but we must be strong and take action for those without a voice.

Genocide can be defined as any act with the intent to destroy, in part or in whole, national, ethnic, racial, or religious groups. Sadly, as I type this, multiple genocides are occurring around the world, and unfortunately, your tax dollars are contributing to these atrocities. Therefore, it is our responsibility to call for an end to the U.S. government’s support of Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Demand a halt to support financially, diplomatically, and otherwise until the violence stops.

Over the last eighty years, Democrats and Republicans have provided bilateral support to the tune of 174 billion dollars to Israel. Israel is the largest cumulative recipient of funds from the US government since World War II. These statistics can be reviewed at congress.gov. Examples of both parties funding military actions of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) include a 38 billion dollar funding package approved by the Obama administration to be paid out over the course of a ten year period, with supplemental packages authorized by the Biden administration in April of 2024 for an additional 8.7 billion dollars, and at least 12 billion dollars from Trump’s administration in 2025 alone. The US has also secured defense deals with the UAE for the purchase of F-35 fighter jets, MQ-9B drones, as well as munition sales. These ‘deals’ come in the form of U.S. Foreign Military Financing (FMF) and are paid for with American taxpayer dollars. Funds are then used to buy weapons from US companies such as Boeing and Lockheed Martin. 

Now, we can see the implications of these FMF deals when the UAE has been shown to support the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), who have taken over El Fasher in Northern Darfur, Sudan. Unverified reports indicate over 100,000 people may have been killed in the last 4 months alone. The UN calls the city of El Fasher “a crime scene.” The daily deaths are only similar to the numbers seen during the Rwandan genocide, the highest in recent history, potentially reaching or surpassing 1,700 people a day. It is impossible to know the exact numbers since this conflict is ongoing. 

The Gaza Health Ministry indicates that over 71,000 deaths have occurred since October 2023, and a peer-reviewed study in The Lancet details that nearly 60% of these deaths, potentially more, are from children, women, and the elderly. 

To ignore or allow ourselves to be ignorant of these atrocities is a moral shortcoming and must be overcome. How people look, how far away they are from us, or how different their culture is does not matter. These are mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters, and their lives have the same value as each of our own. We should show the same concern for Palestine and Sudan as we do for Ukraine. Even though the war between Russia and Ukraine is an awful tragedy in its own right, it is a war between two nations. What is occurring in Palestine and Sudan is a genocidal extermination.

Sadly, as we are seeing state-inflicted violence in American cities such as Minneapolis, Chicago, and Los Angeles, we understand, what imperialists are allowed to get away with abroad, will be seen as permission for what they can do to us here.

Also, it is not only government contracts contributing to this violence. There are private companies, such as Capital One, that are providing lines of credit of up to $100 million to companies like Elbit Defense Systems, an Israeli-owned company that is very active in providing arms to the IDF.

Choose wisely where you spend your money and advocate for how your tax dollars are used; we are accessories in these atrocities until then. 

It is within this insidious, deep pit of ongoing tragedies that we get lost and become overwhelmed. We must not give up! Rest, be strong, and take action! Demand that financial and diplomatic aid be immediately discontinued as long as violence continues in Palestine and El Fasher, Sudan! 

Please contact your state and national representatives and call for sanctions and an end to financial and diplomatic support to any government complicit in or supporting genocide. Those responsible must be held to account! 

Using the tool in the following link, you can easily contact your congressional representatives in the House and Senate.

In addition to making your voice heard, take action by joining Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).