Progressive Groups Unite to Launch “Reject AIPAC” Coalition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 11, 2024
Contact: RejectAIPAC@gmail.com
Progressive Groups Unite to Launch “Reject AIPAC” Coalition to Protect Democracy & Palestinian Rights
Countering AIPAC’s $100M planned spending against progressive incumbents in Democratic primaries
Washington, DC — Today, a broad alliance of progressive groups is coming together to launch a first-of-its-kind “Reject AIPAC” coalition to take on the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and its affiliated dark money Super PACs across electoral, political, digital and organizing strategies.
Together, Justice Democrats, the Working Families Party, US Campaign for Palestinian Rights Action, Jewish Voice for Peace Action, IfNotNow Movement, Sunrise Movement, Showing Up for Racial Justice, MPower Change Action Fund, the Democratic Socialists of America, CommonDefense.us, Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, Center for Popular Democracy Action, Our Revolution, Dream Defenders, Progressive Democrats of America, RootsAction, Grassroot Global Justice Action, Justice is Global Action, Future Coalition, Peace Action, National Iranian American Council Action, and Gen-Z for Change will organize Democratic voters and elected officials to reject the destructive influence of the Republican megadonor-backed AIPAC on the Democratic primary process and our government’s policy towards Palestine and Israel.
“We have watched as AIPAC has done everything it can to silence growing dissent in Congress against Netanyahu’s assault on Gaza—which has killed over 31,000 Palestinians—even as Democratic voters overwhelmingly support a ceasefire and oppose sending more blank checks to the Israeli military,” said the coalition. “Now, AIPAC’s Republican donor-funded Super PAC, the United Democracy Project, is threatening to spend $100 million targeting the handful of Black and brown members of Congress who have led the calls for a ceasefire and the equal protection of Palestinian and Israeli lives. We cannot let a dark money Super PAC, especially one that has endorsed 109 insurrectionist election-deniers, 200+ anti-abortion extremists, and is funded by Donald Trump and Nikki Haley’s megadonors, undermine our democracy. Now is the time for the whole of the Democratic Party to Reject AIPAC once and for all.”
As a part of their efforts, the coalition is:
Launching a seven-figure electoral defense campaign across paid media and field organizing efforts to defend members of Congress targeted by AIPAC. The campaign seeks to combat AIPAC’s multimillion-dollar attacks and protect some of Congress’ most progressive, pro-Palestinian voices from AIPAC’s hand-picked and recruited primary challengers.
Counterbalancing AIPAC’s lobbying efforts on Capitol Hill to defend Palestinian lives and human rights, building on the mass-scale grassroots mobilizations across the country calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and ending Congress’ unconditional political and financial support for the Israeli government and its decades of illegal occupation, flagrant violations of international law and human rights, continued annexation of the West Bank, blockade of Gaza, and forced second-class citizenship of Palestinians in Israel.
Calling on members of Congress to support Palestinian rights, reject AIPAC’s endorsement, and sign a pledge to not accept any more money from the organization—just like Democratic voters and their elected officials have rejected special interest groups like the NRA after they cemented themselves as a far-right group out of step with Democratic Party values. The inaugural signers of this pledge will be announced in the coming weeks.
“The fight against AIPAC is one of the fights for the soul of our democracy—a democracy that has been torn apart by the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, diluted with centuries of voter suppression and disenfranchisement, and traumatized by January 6,” said the coalition. “The overwhelming influence of corporate Super PACs on our democracy and elections has expanded the gap between voters and their elected leaders into a canyon that has been exploited by every special interest and corporate lobby. Rejecting AIPAC is a crucial step in putting voters back at the center of our democracy.”
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