11/27 SEIU LOCAL 1021 RESOLUTION CALLING FOR CEASEFIRE, HUMANITARIAN AID, AND AN END TO THE OCCUPATION OF PALESTINE

SEIU LOCAL 1021 RESOLUTION CALLING FOR CEASEFIRE, HUMANITARIAN AID,

AND AN END TO THE OCCUPATION OF PALESTINE

November 27, 2023

WHEREAS, Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1021 represents over 60,000 employees in local governments, non-profit agencies, health care programs, and schools throughout Northern California. SEIU Local 1021 is a diverse, member-driven organization with members who work to make our cities, schools, colleges, counties, and special districts safe and healthy places to live and raise our families; and

WHEREAS, through our collective voice, we achieve justice, empowerment, and respect in every workplace. It’s our social responsibility to foster inclusive and just conditions for our members and all of those we serve, and we undoubtedly extend that standard across the globe in shared humanity; and

WHEREAS, we mourn the tragic loss of all Palestinian and Israeli civilian lives lost before and after the attacks of October 7th, including the decades-long occupation, forced displacement, and oppression endured by Palestinians since 1948; and

WHEREAS, the relentless Israeli military attack on Gaza and the West Bank, in a disproportionate response, has already led to over twenty thousand Palestinian civilian deaths, nearly half of which are children1; and

WHEREAS, collective punishment is a war crime under international law, Israel is collectively punishing the Palestinian people through the wholesale destruction of Gazan civilian infrastructure and denial of water, food, electricity, fuel and medical aid, leading to the indiscriminate death of thousands of Palestinian civilians; and

WHEREAS, Israel is committing additional war crimes, including acts of genocide and ethnic cleansing, by forcing over 1.7 million Palestinians2 to leave their homes with nowhere safe to flee or find shelter; and

WHEREAS, since World War II, Israel has been the largest overall recipient of US foreign military aid, receiving over $150 billion since 1946, and Biden’s proposed $14.3 billion in additional aid for Israel will take funding from the essential jobs we perform and services we provide as public sector employees; and

WHEREAS, Palestinian trade unions call for workers around the world to stand in solidarity to “end all forms of complicity with Israel’s crimes” and to “pass motions in their trade union to this effect”;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, SEIU Local 1021 calls for, and on elected officials to call for:

● An immediate and permanent ceasefire

● The restoration of food, clean water, fuel and electricity to Gaza

● The safe passage of substantial humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people

● The release of all hostages, including Palestinians being held in Israel jails without charge or trial

● Opposing all existing and any future military aid to Israel

● The withdrawal of Israeli forces illegally occupying Gaza and the West Bank

● An end to the occupation of Palestine and the apartheid policies of the Israeli state allowing for equal rights and self-determination of all Palestinians; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that, given our history of standing up for the rights of the oppressed and working classes around the world, we encourage members and community to learn about the region, to better understand the historical context, so together we build empathy and compassion to deepen our humanity and strengthen our fight for justice; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that we take seriously the plea of “Never Again” and honor the lessons of the Holocaust by fighting anti-semitism, Islamophobia and ethno-nationalism everywhere.

We will defend members’ and staff’s rights to freedom of expression, including support for Palestinian liberation, and protect them from workplace discrimination and retaliation. We advocate for the dignity and safety of members and all people, so that no one is discriminated against because of their identity, ethnicity, religious affiliation, or allyship, in the fight for human rights, equity, and justice; and

FINALLY, BE IT RESOLVED, that we shall call on the California Labor Federation, Central Labor Councils, and SEIU California to adopt and disseminate similar resolutions, understanding that our collective struggle for justice as working people is the pathway to peace.

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1 Over twenty thousand Palestinian civilian deaths, nearly half of which are children

Statistics on the Israeli Genocide in the Gaza Strip (07 October - 24 November 2023), Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, 24 Nov. 2023, euromedmonitor.org/en/article/5981/Statistics-on-the-Israeli-Genocide-in-the-Gaza-Strip-%2807-October---24-November-2023%29.

2 Forcing over 1.7 million Palestinians to leave their homes