St. Paul moves closer to cutting contract with Israeli cybersecurity company
St. Paul, MN – On Tuesday, January 13, about 20 protesters attended the Saint Paul Board of Water Commissioners meeting to demand that the city cut its contract with Waterfall Security Solutions, an Israeli cybersecurity company with direct ties to the IDF.
Activists held up signs and banners with slogans such as “Waterfall – no blood in our water” and “Dump Waterfall Security.” Later, they chanted “Hey, Saint Paul, heed our call: Cut your ties with Waterfall!” before presenting a stack of signed “Cut the Contract” petitions to the Water Board.
This action was organized by Women Against Military Madness (WAMM).
The campaign to cut the Waterfall contract began last summer. At that time, Saint Paul Water Board officials quickly claimed that Waterfall was the only company in the world that could meet Saint Paul's specific water security needs, but as pressure from the community mounted, including call-ins, emails, and actions to pack the meeting room – the board began to more seriously explore its options.
At the Tuesday meeting, the Water Board ultimately approved a “Request for Proposal,” the next step towards formally selecting an apartheid-free alternative to Waterfall.
Activists understand this to be a partial victory for their campaign, but they are not taking it as an opportunity to rest. According to Kim DeFranco, an organizer with WAMM, “We demand that the board cut the contract immediately. We do not want our city to be complicit in the genocide of the Palestinian people, especially when Israel has continually denied the Palestinians access to water. No blood in our water!”
As Minnesotans reel from murderous ICE raids at home and criminal U.S. attacks on Venezuela, Tuesday’s action shows that even through times of chaos and uncertainty, Saint Paul residents have their eyes glued to the issue of Palestine and that they will not stop until their city cuts the Waterfall contract and ends its support for genocide.