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ANTI-ISRAEL RADICALS WHO SHUT DOWN NYC BRIDGES LINKED TO AOC, FUNDED BY
ROCKEFELLERS: EXPERTS

By Michael Kaplan, Sara Nathan and Joshua Rhett Miller

Published Jan. 8, 2024, 6:57 p.m. ET
Protesters who brought three bridges and a tunnel out of Manhattan to a halt
Monday are evidence of secret co-ordination between anti-Israel radicals -- and
represent groups with ties to elite colleges and who have been accused of aiding
terrorism. Steven Hirsch

Mass anti-Israel protests which stopped traffic out of Manhattan Monday were
secretly coordinated by radicals — and are a dramatic escalation of their
tactics, experts tell The Post.

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At least six radical anti-Israel groups were behind the rush-hour protests which
stranded commuters on the Brooklyn, Manhattan and Williamsburg Bridges and the
Holland Tunnel.

The groups, which include the Democratic Socialists of America whose members
include squad member Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, co-ordinated their actions then
blasted their social media accounts with glossy films reveling in the misery
they brought.

They also deployed the Hollywood star power of Susan Sarandon, the actress who
previously had to apologize for antisemitic comments at a rally in Manhattan.

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Justin Finkelstein, analyst with Center on Extremism at the Anti Defamation
League, said it was evidence of secret backchannels between the groups and told
The Post: “I this is the most disruptive that I’ve seen.

10
Hollywood actress Susan Sarandon was the biggest name to turn up at the protests
on Monday. She has already had to apologize for anti-Semitisim. Writers Against
the War on Gaza/ X
10
At least six groups were behind the anti-Israel protests which hit Manhattan
Monday, among them one which has been accused of ties to terrorists.
G.N.Miller/NYPost

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MORE ON: ISRAEL WAR 2023


 * WE MUSTN'T LET THE TERRORISTS WIN — ANTI-ISRAEL ACTIVISTS BLOCKADING TRAFFIC
   NEED REAL PUNISHMENT


 * YONKERS HS BASKETBALL COACH OUSTED AFTER ANTISEMITIC INCIDENT AT GAME SAYS HE
   WAS 'SCAPEGOAT'


 * TERRORISTS RELEASE VIDEO OF GAUNT ISRAELI HOSTAGE WEEPING, PLEADING FOR
   PRISONER SWAP


 * KIDS THINK THEY CAN BRING ANTISEMITIC HATE TO BASKETBALL BECAUSE OF PRO
   SPORTS' POLITICS

“It’s slowing down daily movement of New Yorkers and making it impossible not to
notice them. I think that is their goal. They think these direct actions raise
awareness of the Palestinian cause.”

And he warned more attempts to interrupt ordinary people’s lives are on the way
and said: “Anything that gets them visibility is something they might consider.”

The six groups know to have taken part in what they called “an autonomous
collective” were Palestinian Youth Movement; Democratic Socialists of America,
New York branch; Writers Against War On Gaza; Jewish Voice for Peace; Al-Awda;
and Critical Resistance.

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Between them they boast ties not just to AOC and Sarandon, but to “Angels in
America” playwright Tony Kushner, elite colleges including Yale, Brown and UCLA
— and have received funding from the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation, a Rockefeller
family foundation and the charitable arm of investment company Charles Schwab.

10
Protesters at the bridges and tunnel almost all attempted to hide their
identities with masks, and in some cases traditional Palestinian keffiyehs.
Police arrested more than 300 in total. Steven Hirsch
10
Among the tactics they used to bring chaos were attaching their hands to tires
filled with concrete. The technique makes police officers’ jobs far more
difficult and lengthened the time the protesters managed to disrupt traffic.
Steven Hirsch

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The groups jointly boasted that blocking traffic out of Manhattan across the
Brooklyn, Manhattan and Williamsburg Bridges and the Holland Tunnel would create
similar conditions to life in the Gaza Strip.

NYPD and Port Authority cops arrested 334 protesters, almost all of whom had
concealed their identities with masks and some of traditional Palestinian
keffiyehs.

Some encased their hands in concrete-filled tires to make officers’ jobs even
more difficult.

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Sarandon — who was dropped by her Hollywood agency UTA for her inflammatory
words about Jews just weeks ago — was among those who took part. She was joined
by photographer and activist Nan Goldin, The Post is told.

10
This was the scene on the Brooklyn Bridge when the protests struck, stopping
traffic leaving the city.

In a statement, Sarandon, 77, said she was “taking part in escalating action to
bring a stop to the ongoing genocide in Gaza which we know is being funded by
our US tax dollars.”

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The “Thelma & Louise” star added: “Seeing coordination at this scale, to disrupt
business as usual, makes me believe that people have the power to take on the US
war machine.When it comes to pressuring our representative we don’t have APAC’s
blood money but we have people. Permanent Ceasefire Now.”


PALESTINIAN YOUTH MOVEMENT: “AIMING TO DELEGITIMIZE ISRAEL”

Palestinian Youth Movement describes itself as a “transnational, independent,
grassroots movement of young Palestinians in Palestine and in exile worldwide as
a result of the ongoing Zionist colonization and occupation of our homeland.”

But Influence Watch characterizes the organization as an “anti-Israel activist
group … [aiming] to delegitimize the State of Israel.”

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10
Palestinian Youth Movement was one of the organizations boasting about their
involvement on Instagram. The shadowy group was co-founded by academics from
Brown and UCLA.

Its leadership is shadowy, though it was co-founded in 2014 by Loubna Qutami, a
postdoctoral researcher at Brown University and an assistant professor at UCLA.

According to Influence Watch, a group called Westchester People’s Action
Coalition provides funding or fiscal sponsorship for Palestinian Youth Movement.

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Some of Palestinian Youth Movement’s protests included the National March on
Washington from November 4, the November 1 protest on the steps of the New York
Public Library at Bryant Park and a protest in front of Macy’s on November 24,
the day after Thanksgiving.

The group Tweeted, “It’s not Black Friday, it’s the People’s Day for Palestine.”


JEWISH VOICE FOR PEACE: MILLIONS IN THE BANK

Jewish Voice for Peace, founded in 1996, which describes itself as “the largest
progressive Jewish anti-Zionist organization in the world”, posted photos of the
protest online.

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It boasts feted “Angels in America” playwright Tony Kushner among its supporters
— although he was not present at the protests.

When reached for comment Monday, Kushner declined to comment, although he has
publicly stated that he does not support boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS)
against Israel.

JVP claims more than 300,000 supporters, has 1 million followers on X, formerly
known as Twitter, and maintains chapters on many U.S. college campuses. Its
Columbia University chapter was suspended in November for allegedly violating
university policies on holding campus events.

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10
Broadway playwright Tony Kushner is a board member of Jewish Voice for Peace. He
declined to comment to The Post about the protests, which he did not take part
in. He has opposed other policies the group holds. Bruce Glikas/WireImage

After the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel, Chicago-based Rabbi Brant Rosen,
co-founder of JVP’s Rabbinical Council, said he grieved for fellow Jews who were
killed, yet maintained solidarity with Palestinians.

The Anti-Defamation League has called JVP as “a radical anti-Israel and
anti-Zionist activist group that advocates for the boycott of Israel and
eradication of Zionism.”

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In its 2021 federal tax returns, JVP reported revenue of nearly $2.9 million; it
says the vast bulk of its income is from individual contributions. Since 2014 it
has received funding from among others the Rockefeller Brothers Foundation, the
Charles Schwab Foundation and the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation.


AL-AWADA: ACCUSED OF TIES TO TERRORISTS

Al-Awda’s leaders include the attorney Lamis Deek – on her website, she lists
herself as a “core member and former co-chair since 2000 — and the co-founder is
Mazin Qumsiyeh, formerly a professor at Yale University.

According to the Jerusalem Post, in 2020, GoFundMe closed Al-Awda’s account for
reasons that were not made public.

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10
Al-Awdna New York posted the New York Post’s report on the protests in an
attempt to boast about their effect. But the group has been accused by Influence
Watch of maintaining ties with terrorist organizations. nycpym/Instagram

In September, Al-Awda helped sponsor a pro-Palestine festival at University of
Penn, which included Roger Waters (the former member of Pink Floyd who has faced
accusations of being against Israel) and fired CNN commentator Marc Lamont Hill,
who was axed for using the anti-Israel phrase “from the river to the sea.”

The name of the group is Arabic for Right of Return, but, according to Influence
Watch, the organization maintains ties with terrorist organizations.

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Formed in Coral Gables, Florida, in the early 2000s, according to the Jerusalem
Post, a 2006 rally in San Francisco had members chanting “Jews are our dogs.”


NEW YORK CITY DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISTS OF AMERICA: TIED TO AOC

The local chapter of the largest socialist organization nationwide – the
Democratic Socialists of Americahas more than 6,000 members, according to its
website. 

The organization’s boasts that it aims to counter “US imperialism” and
intervention in foreign conflict by disrupting the “war machine in New York
City” with grassroots demonstrations while collaborating with other activists.

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In October, the group apologized for promoting a pro-Palestinian rally and
failing to condemn Hamas.

Ocasio-Cortez later denounced the demonstration, as well as Rep. Jamaal Bowman,
who quit the Democratic Socialists of America last year. The Post has reached
out to Ocasio-Cortez for comment.

10
The Democratic Socialists of America’s New York branch has boasted about
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s membership. She has spoken out against Israel’s war
on Hamas, but was not at Monday’s protests. ZUMAPRESS.com

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What do you think? Post a comment.


WRITERS AGAINST THE WAR ON GAZA: POETS WHO BRING STAR POWER

Writers Against the War On Gaza (WAZOG) include poets and writers for obscure
magazines — but they have managed to get support from big names including
comedian Janeane Garofalo, actor Gael García Bernal and author George R.R.
Martin.

One of their key supporters is Sarandon, who turned up at the Manhattan Bridge
to blast Israel and accuse it of spending “blood money,” an antisemitic trope.

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Other organizing members include Gabriel Winant — an assistant professor of
history at the University of Chicago — and Hannah Zeavin, an assistant professor
of history at the California at Berkeley and founding editor of Parapraxis
magazine.

10
Writers Against the War on Gaza posted this inflammatory Instagram message
comparing police to “pigs,” despite being a group who include poets and writers
for obscure literary journals. Writers Against the War on Gaza/ Instagram

 The group, which is part of the so-called “Shut It Down” coalition, has
previously participated in rallies calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, including at
John F. Kennedy International Airport on Dec. 27 and a Dec. 21 rally at the
headquarters of American Israel Public Affairs Committee in Manhattan.


 CRITICAL RESISTANCE: ANTI-POLICE VETERANS

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 A national, grassroots movement designed to end the “prison industrial complex”
first organized in 1997. More than 3,500 activists then met current and former
inmates at a September 1998 conference in Berkely, California, according to the
group’s website.

Left-win activist Angela Davis, 79, cofounded Critical Resistance to “dismantle”
policing in 1997 and 26 years later, with policing still in existence, it still
campaigns against the “prison industrial complex.”

“CR’s work in the fight for liberation remains as urgent as ever,” it says on
its website.


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