Brooklyn For Peace Walk for Peace: August 9, 2006
Remarks by Carolyn Eisenberg

We come here today to speak for peace, at a time when our government has embraced war. The tragedy now unfolding in Lebanon, Gaza and Israel is the product of reckless, cruel and self-defeating policies, set in Washington.

The pictures coming out of Lebanon are so wrenching and sad, you want to look away. But they hold us in their grip.

I grew up in a Jewish home, where my first knowledge of history was of the Holocaust. And I used to ask my parents, "How could Germans act this way?" And their answer was always the same — when one group of people decides another group of people are less than human, all crimes are possible. For them and others in our community, the lesson of the Holocaust was clear and simple: all people are equally valuable, all people are equally important.

But what has happened now? What kind of math are we doing in this country, when three thousand American deaths are redeemed by tens of thousands of dead Iraqis? What kind of math are we doing, when the kidnapping of three Israeli soldiers warrants the destruction of an entire nation — more than a thousand Lebanese now killed, many of them children, three quarters of million people rendered homeless. As we gather here this afternoon, there are babies in Tyre who will die tonight because supplies cannot reach them, because the Israeli Defense Forces have cut off the city, bombing the roads which relief workers need to travel.

In the last two weeks, Condoleezza Rice has said one true thing: "We must go to the root."

So we should do that. Let us go to the root …

The root is an illegal occupation of Palestinian lands that has gone on too long.

The root is a one-sided American policy that has obstructed a diplomatic settlement that could have protected the security of both Israel and Palestine.

The root is an aggressive Bush Administration, which took the occasion of the attacks here in New York to launch an utterly irrelevant, inept, ill-informed and illegal effort to remake the Middle East, according to its predilections. And they have made a shambles.

The root is an American policy, which says to the Israeli Government don't hesitate to use force, go as far you wish and be assured that we will keep sending you money and weapons and that we will paralyze the Security Council while you advance.

The root is a militaristic White House, which would welcome an Israeli attack on Iran.

But while we are speaking of roots, we must recognize that the Bush White House does not bear exclusive responsibility for American actions. It would be tempting to say that the US Congress has abdicated its responsibility. But the problem runs deeper. The US Congress is responsible for these policies — denouncing the crimes of Hezbollah, while approving those of Israel.

All of us share a belief that attacks against civilians are abhorrent, whatever the reason or excuse. We deplore the decision of Hezbollah to launch missiles against Israeli cities, but we deplore as well the destruction of Lebanon.

Two of our Congressional representative Major Owens and Nydia Velasquez have courageously called for an immediate and unconditional cease-fire. And we should thank them for their stand. But where are the others? Congressman Towns? Congressman Nadler? Congressman Wiener? Congressman Fossella? Senator Schumer? Senator Clinton?

When will they speak for a common humanity and not just a narrow group?

We are gathered here because we believe that the U.S. policy of endless war is bad for the Lebanese, for the Palestinians, for the Israelis, for Americans, for all of us. The violence and rage that are building in this world are a threat to everyone.

We are calling today for an immediate cease-fire by all sides, for a cessation of arms shipments by the United States or by any other party to this embattled region. We are asking our elected officials to speak for their constituents — for the vast majority of Brooklyn residents of all ethnicities and religions, who live harmoniously with neighbors, who believe in peace and who want these wars to stop.

Remembering the suffering here in New York, when our own city was attacked, we are determined to persevere. We will keep marching, phoning, faxing, writing, organizing and doing whatever is necessary to bring these ruinous policies to a halt.

See local Brooklyn press coverage in the Courier-Life papers.

Carolyn Eisenberg is Co-Founder and Vice Chair of Brooklyn For Peace