The settlements are not Israel. Saying so shouldn’t be a crime.

email advocacy

Dear [Your Elected Official],

I am writing to urge you to oppose any efforts to advance S.4296. The bill represents a draconian violation of Americans’ civil liberties and it undermines the prospect of a future Israeli-Palestinian agreement.

Both S.4296 and the existing law it seeks to amend undermine the Two-State solution and perpetuate the Occupation by erasing the distinction between Israel and the Occupied Territories. This runs counter to longstanding US policy. Consecutive US administrations, Democratic and Republican, have not recognized the Occupied Territories to be part of the state of Israel, instead considering Israeli settlements to be obstacles to peace.

The amendments to existing law included in S.4296 create a situation where those who attempt to differentiate between Israeli goods and those made in the settlements – by using resources published by the EU or the UN – could be in violation of this law.

I urge you to oppose this legislation and any effort to advance it.

Sincerely,

[Your Name]

[Your City & State]

Send me occasional emails about this issue

Summary

Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) reintroduced legislation that threatens individual American citizens who choose to avoid products from West Bank settlements with criminal penalties that could include a fine of up to $1,000,000 and a 20-year prison sentence. For nearly twenty years, American allies of the settler movement have worked to push bills like this in Washington and in our statehouses. These bills all pretend that there is no distinction between Israel and West Bank settlements, they all fashion themselves as if they’re an effort to shield Israel from boycotts, and they all violate bedrock democratic principles. Unfortunately, some of these bills have been passed into law. Americans have the right to freedom of speech. But this bill applies immense penalties passed by a previous Congress to even more cases of constitutionally protected activity. No democracy should tolerate laws that punish people for this sort of political speech. Not just our civil liberties are at stake. This bill also legislates a right-wing geo-strategic fallacy:  It relies on definitions that conflate settlements with Israel proper – further undermining the crucial distinction between Israel and the Occupation and promoting a pro-annexation agenda. Tell your senators to oppose this legislation.

Who will receive your email?

Your Federal Senators