Texas Equal Access Fund recognizes our previous statements on Palestine did not fully reflect our collective understanding and commitment to reproductive justice. After dedicating time to deepen our knowledge together and grounding ourselves in our values, we now have a more informed perspective that better reflects our commitment to social and reproductive justice. We acknowledge that the ongoing genocide in Gaza by the Israeli state is a reproductive justice issue that has taken the lives of over 10,000 children, and created a distressing and completely new category of WCNSF, Wounded Children with no Surviving Families, which has the tally running up alarmingly. Palestinians in Gaza are experiencing a catastrophic humanitarian crisis, including a dire situation for pregnant and menstruating individuals amidst a collapsing health care system. We are devastated to see the magnitude of pain and suffering and demand an immediate end to the genocide. We call for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, for an end to the occupation and for the liberation of Palestine.
As Texans, we decry the use of Texas-manufactured weapons in these conflicts, our state’s funding of Israel through hundreds of thousands of dollars in bonds, and our state leaders’ support for Israeli militarization that inspires the deadly Operation Lone Star, the border wall in Texas, and the militarization of our own communities. We oppose the US government’s historical and unending funding for Israel’s weapons and militarism to enforce apartheid and the current genocide.
We also acknowledge the broader context of violence and genocides beyond Palestine. Similar crises, like the ongoing conflicts in Sudan and the specter of genocide in Darfur, remind us of the global scale of such injustices. The colonization in Congo and other regions experiencing severe conflict and humanitarian crises require our attention and action as part of our broader commitment to social and reproductive justice. Everyone should be speaking out about these atrocities.
To support Palestinian liberation and contribute to the cause, we encourage our supporters to take practical actions. One impactful way is to help ensure Palestinians have access to the internet during communication blackouts, which are common. Purchasing and donating eSIMs (digital SIM cards that provide mobile data access) can be a vital lifeline for those in affected areas, allowing them to stay connected, access information, and communicate with the outside world.
Additionally, engaging with your local representatives is a powerful tool for change. Contact your members of Congress to express your concern and demand a ceasefire. Your voice. Your voice can influence policy decisions and international responses. Take action locally and Pack the Denton CIty Council meeting on 2/20/2024 and sign the Petition to Demand Denton City Council to Pass a Ceasefire Resolution. Join local supporters of a Free Palestine in Dallas to Pack the Dallas City Council meeting on 2/14/2024. Additionally you can support the work of HEART by making a donation to support HEART’s INAYA Care Fund . Make your voice heard through showing up for local actions, phone calls, emails, or letters to your elected officials underscores the urgency of the situation and the demand for peace and justice.
Further Readings:
You can read our longer, expanded statement here.
Repro Justice
- Letter: Reproductive Justice Includes Palestinian Liberation– Access Reproductive Care- Southeast (ARC-SE): A letter from an abortion fund based in the southern US about the intersections of state sanctioned violence and Repro Justice.
- Solidarity with Palestine: A Radical Black Feminist Mandate Reading List– Black Women Radicals: A brief primer on the extensive, and unwavering tradition of Black feminist educators, poets, writers, organizers, and more who have committed to being in solidarity with Palestine. Page includes a recording of the recent online event “Black Feminist Writers and Palestine” featuring Clarissa Brooks, Angela Y. Davis, Breya Johnson, Briona Simone Jones, and Jaimee A. Swift.
- Palestine: A Reproductive Justice Issue– US Campaign for Palestinian Rights
- What Pregnant Women Face in Gaza– Time Article
Palestine History
- Palestine 101– Decolonize Palestine: an interactive and easy to follow set of articles exploring Palestinian history from 9000 BCE through 2022.
- Palestine Political education – Spotify podcast learning of history of Paletine
- The Palestine Academy: A digital space about history and decolonization movement through videos with resources to follow and stay up to date.
- Political Education: Palestine- Podcast Playlist: A variety of podcasts grouped to explain the Palestinian Struggle and debunk myths, exploring Jewish Anti Zionism, making sense of the latest news, and the connections of Palestine’s struggles with other movements (abolition, disability justice, etc).
- Jewish Voices For Peace: Regular blog posts with continual calls to actions and highlights of ways Jewish communities are organizing to support Palestians.
- From the River to the Sea (Free Ebook download)- Haymarket Books: Personal testimonies from within Gaza and the West Bank, along with essays and interviews that collectively provide crucial histories and analysis about settler colonialism and resistance in the region.
- Inextricably Linked: The Interwoven Liberation Struggles in Palestine, Congo, Haiti, and Atlanta – Panel with Black Feminist Futures
- Palestine Political education – Spotify Podcast list
- There’s no reproductive justice without an end to police violence – Prime Article
- True reproductive justice requires anti-racist advocacy – Women’s Media Article
- Yellowhammer – Solidarity statement
- West Fund and Frontera Fund Soliarity statement and Medium Article
- Southerners On New Ground(SONG)– The Mandate
Additional tools-
- Support HEART’s INAYA Care Fund
- Philanthropy Open Letter for Humanity and Justice– Funders for a Ceasefire now.
- All Out for Palestine – Digital Action Toolkit– Palestinian Feminist Collective: This toolkit is an offering and invitation to all lovers of freedom to join or deepen your engagement in the struggle for Palestinian liberation at this critical moment. We call upon all our communities and co-strugglers to take immediate action: to get informed, to spread awareness, to speak out and up, to organize, mobilize, and to commit to standing on the right side of history
- Abolition and the Liberation of Palestine-. Dr. Angela Y Davis, Lara Kiswani (Executive Director of the Arab Resource and Organizing Center), Stefanie Fox (Executive Director of Jewish Voice for Peace), and Nadine Naber (INCITE! National) will join us in a discussion moderated by Mohamed Shehk (Campaigns Director of Critical Resistance) to help us understand the situation on the ground in Palestine, how our organizations and people everywhere can mount effective resistance to the genocidal war against Palestinians, and how we can use abolitionist strategies such as Dismantle-Change-Build, Divest/Invest & “Defund,” and “shrink and starve” to do so.
- Free Palestine!: A Solidarity Protest Playlist: Jams for comrades to sustain us in the streets! All songs are written or performed by artists who support Boycott, Divestment, & Sanctions (BDS) for Palestinian freedom.
- BDS – Boycott, Divest, Sanctions
