I am sharing this information because Zionism and normalization within the Muslim community is unacceptable. I ask all liberation-aligned folks to boycott MPV and raise awareness wherever possible. I do not condone hateful speech towards anyone at this organization, but I do demand justice and accountability in this matter. I am not asserting that everyone within the organization holds these views, but we must divest from and boycott MPV as a whole. They have a large following and influence within our community and the immensely harmful views expressed by Ani Zonneveld on behalf of MPV are disturbing, to say the least. If folks reading this have additional information that I should add, or if you find any errors in the information I have presented, please reach out to me via Instagram direct message @galateaforestsystem (or via email/on Discord if you already have my info for those)
Work Done By Others To Expose MPV
The below Instagram post shared in January 2024 by @auqtm and @qtmsolidaritynet was the way many folks in my community first found out about MPV’s normalization/Zionism:
Link for the above post: https://www.instagram.com/p/C1wDvA-AW-3/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
In January 2024, a queer Muslim friend of mine reached out to MPV in Instagram DMs with concerns about their Zionism. Screenshots shared anonymously with permission:
MPV did not respond to my friend’s most recent message (above) or share a post clarifying their position re: Zionism. It is worth noting that I have sent many DMs to the main MPV Instagram account, and the messages were read, but I’ve never received a response, which in my opinion indicates that MPV is not interested in taking accountability.
Below is a comprehensive breakdown of every way in which MPV’s media has contradicted the Palestinian thawabet, and therefore is either an example of normalization or Zionism. Note that in each section the examples listed are not ALL of the examples of that manner of normalization/Zionism, they are just the prominent ones I am using to illustrate the nature of MPV’s rhetoric. It’s also worth mentioning that much of this comes from newsletters written by Ani Zonneveld, MPV’s founder and director.
Please see these posts if you are not familiar with the thawabet: https://www.instagram.com/p/DCPtpmWRP8H/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
https://www.instagram.com/p/DAWJIUSOXAz/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
https://www.instagram.com/p/DC4d0kEu4jd/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Quotes in italics are from an individual I spoke with at one of the MPV regional chapters- we had a discussion after which they met with Ani regarding my concerns and responded with several MPV action items that were to follow. This person clearly disagreed with Ani on some important points but also used normalizing language at times. I am not going to share details on this person’s views as I do not have their consent to do so.
Supporting “state of Israel”
MPV’s initial response to the Al Aqsa Flood Operation included the following: “If you are for Human Rights, then it must include everyone, the Palestinian’s right to statehood and Israel’s right to exist.” (Note that this is presented as MPV’s view, not specifically Ani Zonneveld’s.) This post was deleted as there was significant backlash, shout-out to @auqtm for getting a screenshot beforehand
MPV’s follow-up statement was not much better (I will share examples in this document but here is the link to the statement:): https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5d7a8b54f8fcb073d517d297/t/653a754c102dab56440e7724/1698329933423/A+Just+Peace+is+Possible%E2%80%93And+Urgently+Necessary.pdf
December 2023 newsletter: “The one counter narrative and solution is a two-state solution. Can we finally end this 75 years of occupation once and for all?” Calling for a two-state solution and an end to the occupation of Palestine is contradictory. Giving colonizers a state on stolen land, allowing them to govern that land instead of its Indigenous population, means that land is occupied.
January 2024 newsletter: “a two-State solution is the only solution.” A two-state “solution” achieves the goal of Zionism.
October 2024 Newsletter: “For Israel, continuing to be a pariah state, to feel besieged, is not a way to exist. For Palestinians, to be free of being besieged is the only way to exist.” So Ani doesn’t want “Israel” to be a pariah state or to feel besieged-she wants them to be respected and unchallenged. Anyone who truly cares about the Palestinian people will want the opposite because that is how Palestine will be freed.
“[Ani] will also post a statement that the two state views are hers and MPV leadership consists of many diverse people with a difference in views and opinions but all are open to discourse and learning from each other.”
This has not happened. But regardless, diversity and being open to discourse are not excuses for supporting settler colonialism. There is no valid excuse. This seems like an attempt at letting other MPV staff off the hook, but I don’t buy that. If the founder and director of the organization I worked for was a Zionist, I would quit. That association would make me a normalizer.
“Normalization is okay if Palestinians also get a state”
January 19th 2025 ceasefire press release: “Any normalization of relations with Israel cannot be at the expense of, but instead must have as a precondition, an independent Palestinian state.” This is a blatant example of normalization: they’re saying normalization is okay if the two-state “solution” is achieved.
Link for the above screenshots: https://www.instagram.com/p/DFAgNuDJzat/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA%3D%3D
October 7th 2024 press release: “to cease ALL funding to Israel until they end their genocide against the Palestinian people.” This openly advocates for giving “Israel” money if they become more “peaceful” illegal occupiers.
link for the above screenshot: https://www.instagram.com/p/DA0g5xlvtvp/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Condemning Armed Resistance
October 26th 2023 press release: “MPV resolutely condemns the October 7 attack which resulted in the killing, torture, and kidnapping of Israeli civilians.” Condemning an oppressed people’s armed resistance is contradictory to Islamic values and to international law.
December 2023 newsletter: Ani Zonneveld calls Hamas “a terrorist organization,” i.e. condemns Palestinian armed resistance
Nonviolence rhetoric
The November 2023 newsletter was centered around Ani’s views on nonviolence:
This portrays Hamas as being the initiators of the violence, which we all know actually began decades ago during the Nakba. Ani mentions the Nakba in multiple subsequent newsletters- she is evidently aware of the fact that Zionists started slaughtering Palestinians long before Hamas even existed. As someone who speaks so much about human rights, it is her responsibility to present the history of Occupied Palestine truthfully on her platform, which means retracting these sorts of statements.
October 2024 newsletter: MPV sponsored an event by Salt of the Earth via their San Francisco chapter, which advocates for nonviolence
Link for the above screenshot: https://www.instagram.com/saltoftheearthorg?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==
December 25th 2024 Instagram post promoted Kairos Palestine: “We hold a clear position that non-violent resistance to this injustice is a right and duty for all Palestinians, including Christians.” Source: https://www.kairospalestine.ps/index.php
The below slide posted on MPV’s Instagram condemns armed resistance:
Link for the above screenshot: https://www.instagram.com/p/DEAkjyVoCoi/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Validating “Israeli” identity and promoting Zionists
In the January 2024 newsletter, Ani says, “We are happy to discover T'ruah, a group of Rabbis for Human Rights.” T’ruah is a Zionist organization. I cannot think of any reason why a genuinely pro-Palestine person would promote an organization like this instead of anti-Zionist Jewish organizations who are aligned with the thawabet.
Link for the above screenshot: https://www.instagram.com/p/DA1KB1YRd6p/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Link for the above screenshot: https://www.instagram.com/p/C1Hrdl8rtci/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
May 20th 2024: MPV hosted an event for “Israelis” (Zionist colonizers) to grieve alongside Palestinians (the people those colonizers are mass slaughtering). This validation of Israeli identity and both-sides perspective is clearly normalization of the Zionist entity.
Link for the above screenshots: https://www.instagram.com/p/C7Dj4TFr6qE/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
This event was hosted along with Keeping It Sacred, which is a Zionist organization:
Link for above screenshot: https://www.instagram.com/p/C7H8aKuJ9bI/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
October 2024 newsletter: MPV sponsored an event by Salt of the Earth, “a Palestinian man and an ex-IDF sharing their stories and the path forward”, via their San Francisco chapter (MPV has multiple regional chapters and I’ve been given the impression that they, to some extent, operate separately from the main office, but this normalization obviously reflects poorly on the San Francisco chapter.)
Link for the above screenshot: https://www.mpvusa.org/campaigns/view-campaign/97HScfkCsL_TQy8k9HqjJreh-lxfYSAM1ToNAPmegYrVg-NOwbNjXI2RdkWhJQ8zPefxqKcEbElXSVsZ7KelFP3-_fCCvbVW
Link for the above screenshot: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C_tfQsQSQo3/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
December 2nd 2024: promoted Zoom webinar with Zionist Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
Link for the above screenshot: https://www.instagram.com/p/DDEz7PiJctC/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Link for the above screenshot: https://www.instagram.com/p/DBPQ1kySTtF/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Not acknowledging history of colonialism/Zionist genocidal intent
*I haven’t seen this specific example on lists of thawabet items, but I find it extremely problematic regardless so I am including it as a separate category
November 2023 MPV newsletter: Ani says, “...sadly, with the heinous attack of Israel by Hamas, and with the slaughter of innocent Palestinians, especially children, as punishment at the hands of Israel, all the non-violence stance rendered moot. Claiming to stand for the values of non-violence in times of peace is too easy.” It sounds like Ani is calling pre-October 2023 Occupied Palestine peaceful. Zionists have been bombing, torturing, and otherwise terrorizing Palestinians for decades. How is that peaceful? Zionists have never stood for non-violence.
August 2024 newsletter/Instagram post: “prior to the creation of the state of Israel” is extremely euphemistic. The “state of Israel” was created by mass displacement and murder.
Screenshot for the above post: https://www.instagram.com/p/C-Tt06FgIlU/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
October 7th 2024 statement: there is no acknowledgment of the decades long occupation of Palestine. (see link below)
https://www.instagram.com/p/DA0g5xlvtvp/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
“Peace”
There are many mentions of “peace” in MPV’s statements and posts regarding Palestine, and shamefully minimal usage of the words “liberation” and “freedom.” (From what I have seen, the posts that do use “liberation” and “freedom” are not signed by Ani like the newsletters are.)
October 7th 2024 statement: contains the phrase “revert to the path of peace”, which is concerning because there was no peace before October 7th of 2023.
Zionist Propaganda Incident and Subsequent Lack of Clarity
The January 2024 MPV newsletter included the propaganda regarding the alleged SA perpetrated by Hamas during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation- this reflects trust in “Israeli” media.
When I had a discussion with the individual at one of MPV’s regional chapters and voiced my concerns about this matter, they reportedly brought this up with Ani Zonneveld, who clarified that she was not presenting the SA propaganda as truth in this newsletter, but rather voicing disgust at the blatant lies. I was informed that “[MPV] will make the edits to the January newsletter.” A short footnote was later added to the January 2024 newsletter stating that the SA allegations against Hamas were proven to be unsubstantiated, which, in my opinion, is contradictory to what was expressed to me in DMs with the person I spoke to. If Ani was not presenting the propaganda as truth in the first place, why not just clarify that? Stating that the claims are unsubstantiated is, in my opinion, the sort of thing you would do when the information you had presented as truth has been proven false.
The screenshots above are from my instagram post, which I shared prior to my conversation with the person at MPV: https://www.instagram.com/p/C8pMIsvJYn8/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
The above screenshot is from my Instagram story highlight called “MPV+ receipts”
https://www.instagram.com/s/aGlnaGxpZ2h0OjE4MDYwNTg5MzEyNTIzOTU4?igsh=MTVzYXlmamMzbDJzdw==
Questionable Politics
In the November 2024 newsletter, Ani Zonneveld promotes a pro-Kamala progressive voting organization (Vote Common Good), and states that “I myself am casting a vote with the following in mind: the rights of my Black brothers and sisters, the rights of the LGBTQ+ community, the rights of immigrants, including Muslims and non-Muslims, the poor, the elderly's social security benefits, and the environment.” Note that this list doesn’t include Palestinians. While I don’t think that this constitutes an endorsement per se, I think it pretty clearly demonstrates that Ani was comfortable voting for, and encouraged others to vote for, a candidate who was responsible for the genocide of our Palestinian siblings.
(I understand that many folks voted for Kamala purely because they wanted to prevent another Tr*mp presidency, and my intention here is not to condemn that, but I feel strongly that if someone is pro-Palestine and sharing that they are voting for Kamala, this decision should be accompanied by the admission that she is guilty of the genocide of the Palestinian people. It is clear that the ongoing genocide did not factor into Ani’s choice here, and she shared this on an account with thousands of followers, which is what I am criticizing.)
Link for the above screenshot: https://www.instagram.com/p/DBj1bf_BbZs/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Link for the above screenshots: https://www.instagram.com/p/DB9aVYQyWyi/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Ani’s Response To Me/Excuses
“Ani was one of the first people in November [2023] to go to the UN and call this a genocide. And she's written about that in the newsletters.”
Ani has, on multiple occasions, referred to the ongoing genocide as a genocide. However, in the January 2024 newsletter (below), she referred to it as the “Israel-Hamas war.” In any case, saying the Zionist entity is committing a genocide doesn’t mean you’re not a Zionist. It does not cancel out the harmful rhetoric documented above. There is no acceptable form of Zionism.
November 2024 post-election statement: Ani again refers to this genocide as a war.
Link for the above screenshot: https://www.instagram.com/p/DCDO6QRSjM4/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
“There will be a statement that clarifies that Ani stands for permanent ceasefire, end to the siege, end apartheid and a free Palestine.”
The statement linked below (I think this is the entirety of their August 2024 newsletter but that one is not accessible on their website at this time) is responding to my criticisms of Ani’s many problematic views and statements. There is no mention of a permanent ceasefire, end to the siege and apartheid, or a free Palestine. It does, however, contain the “creation of Israel” euphemism discussed previously.
The matter it does address, my concern regarding Ani’s history of fraternizing with Zionists, was not at the top of my priority list, and in my opinion it was chosen because it is less “controversial” than her two state solution and nonviolence views. Speculations aside, Ani is defending her normalization. She is saying she asks Zionists nicely to realize that Palestinians are human beings, when participating in BDS, for example, would be a more thawabet-aligned tactic.
https://www.instagram.com/p/C-Tt06FgIlU/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Following Zionist Accounts
The @mpvusa Instagram account follows these Zionist accounts (links are to posts demonstrating their Zionist views):
@jqinternational https://www.instagram.com/p/C8cD3PARrjQ/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
https://www.instagram.com/p/CyMc-4lOzR8/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
@jewishqueeryouth
https://www.instagram.com/p/Cy1FIiJMf_2/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
https://www.instagram.com/p/DBrJn5XPHUv/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
https://www.instagram.com/p/C8DFZWuvxvm/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
https://www.instagram.com/p/C7UdgI-vWmC/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
https://www.instagram.com/p/C2AboQOs37Y/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
“A follow does not equal endorsement. Ani just likes to stay in the loop with how these far right Zionist groups are thinking/behaving.”
MPV has added a note to their bio that “Following does mean an endorsement of an account’s values,” which I think is meant to say “doesn’t” considering what the regional chapter contact told me. I personally disagree with following Zionist accounts as an anti-Zionist since a) those accounts have a following comprised mainly of Zionists, therefore it gives the impression that you are a Zionist as well, b) your followers may see that you follow this account and think, oh okay, they must be an okay organization then, since they trust your opinion and judgement, and c) a follow shows Meta that these accounts are popular and therefore their algorithm will benefit. I recognize that some folks find it inconvenient to search for an account in order to stay in the loop on what they’re posting, so I am not using this matter as a major point of evidence that MPV is Zionist, though I find it concerning that they follow blatantly Zionist accounts. I also think it’s strange that MPV’s page is following these accounts when the explanation is that Ani likes to stay in the loop…can she not just follow them from her personal account? But I digress.
Full November 2023/December 2023/January 2024 newsletters
The links to these newsletters on MPV’s website are currently not working. I’m not sure if this is intentional as a response to criticism, or merely a technical issue. I emailed MPV on February 4th advising them of this and they have yet to respond. https://www.mpvusa.org/newsletters
Ani Zonneveld
I have additional Zionism/normalization receipts from Ani Zonneveld’s personal social media and website- some of them are in my Instagram highlights linked previously in this document. This document focuses on what she’s said on MPV’s platforms, but if folks would like the full list of everything I’ve found on Ani separately from MPV, please reach out to me via Instagram DM @galateaforestsystem.
Link with list of MPV Donors
I emailed MPV asking for more info on these organizations on February 4th, so far no response