Washington D.C. – Delegates from several community and non-profit organizations delivered a petition in support of Rasmea Odeh to the home of Attorney General Eric Holder on Thursday, November 14, 2013.

Signed by more than three thousand people, the petition calls for charges against Odeh to be dropped. The petition delivery follows a coordinated day of action on Wednesday, November 13, coinciding with Odeh’s court arraignment on charges of immigration fraud. More than a hundred supporters gathered outside the Detroit court where Odeh submitted her not-guilty plea. Actions were also held in Chicago, Oakland, Philadelphia, Gainesville, Tampa, Salt Lake City, Minneapolis, and Milwaukee.

“It is very clear that Rasmea is being targeted for her activism,” says Hatem Abudayyeh of the US Palestinian Community Network. “These charges are the latest example of a U.S. government policy that seeks to repress prominent Arab American community members and people working for the rights of Palestinians.”

On October 22 Odeh was arrested at her Chicago home by agents of the Department of Homeland Security who charged her with lying on her immigration application in 1994 for failing to mention an arrest and conviction in an Israeli military court over 40 years ago. Her arrest comes three years after 23 anti-war and Palestinian rights activists were subpoenaed to testify before a Grand Jury. Several of these activists also had their homes raided by the FBI and no indictments have been filed against them to date, though US Attorneys continue to claim the “investigation is ongoing”.

According to Palestine Solidarity Legal Support, during the past year alone there have been more than 75 documented cases of intimidation and legal bullying against Palestinian-Americans and supporters.

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