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.

#WashingtonDC #PalestineSolidarity #HomelandSecurity #AttorneyGeneralEricHolder #InjusticeSystem #FBIRepression #RasmeaOdeh

Tucson, AZ – On Wednesday evening a dozen activists protested outside the Federal Building and Tucson City Hall to demand the charges against 65 year-old Palestinian activist Rasmea Odeh be dropped.

As part of a November 13 national day of action in support of Odeh, signs reading “Stop FBI Attacks on Activists”, “I Support Palestine, Women, and Rasmea”, and “Free Rasmea Now!” were held high and passersby greeted the protest with honks and fists raised in solidarity.

In an effort to spread the urgency of solidarity to everyone possible, organizers handed out leaflets explaining the outrageous arrest and prosecution of Odeh. The leaflets also praise the veteran leader’s life long dedication to equality and liberation. Pedestrians and passing drivers stopped for the fliers that also lay out an action plan for mobilizing against the charges and asking people to sign a petition, with more info at www.StopFBI.net.

Having been arrested on October 22, 2013 and currently facing a ten-year prison sentence or deportation for supposed “immigration fraud,” Odeh is the latest target of U.S. government political repression of pro-Palestinian activists. Starting in 2001, thousands of Palestinian, Arab, and Muslim men were rounded up and deported by the Bush administration. More recent are the widely reported FBI raids of 23 anti-war activists’ houses and workplaces on September 24, 2010, under President Obama, with an investigation still “ongoing”.

Associate director of the Arab American Action Network and the leader of its Arab Women’s Committee, Odeh is a renowned defender of immigrant and women’s rights whose arrest and trial has caught the attention of progressives across the country. Tucson activists proudly showed up to do their part and encourage others to join the struggle to free Rasmea. Organizers vowed to return for a bigger rally on the first day of Rasmea Odeh’s trial in Detroit.

#TucsonAZ #PalestineSolidarity #HomelandSecurity #politicalRepression #AntiWar23 #FBIRepression #RasmeaOdeh

Gainesville, FL – Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) at the University of Florida held a sign holding on Wednesday, November 13, to demand that the U.S. government drop the charges against Rasmea Odeh. Odeh is a Palestinian-American organizer and an international solidarity activist. Despite holding U.S. citizenship for the past 20 years, the Department of Homeland Security, ICE and the FBI arrested her on October 22, and on the allegations of immigration fraud.

Members of SDS and allies chanted, “Drop the charges now!” and “Solidarity is not a Crime” at the major intersection of University and 13th in Gainesville at the height of rush hour. People walking by were supportive and took flyers detailing Odeh’s case and the link to the online petition.

As Robbey Hayes, a lead organizer with SDS, said, “Unfortunately, Odeh’s case is something we’ve seen before and activists in this country continue to feel repression for being organizers.”

UF Students for a Democratic Society will continue to stand in solidarity with Rasmea Odeh and the national campaign to drop the charges and end the targeted repression of Palestinian-American leaders.

#GainesvilleFL #StudentMovement #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #PalestineSolidarity #HomelandSecurity #politicalRepression #RasmeaOdeh

Detroit, MI – More than 100 people joined a rally in solidarity with Palestinian women’s leader Rasmea Odeh as she went to court here Nov.13. Agents of the Department of Homeland Security arrested Odeh on Oct. 22 at her home in Evergreen Park, a suburb of Chicago. Odeh is charged with immigration fraud. Allegedly, in her application for citizenship, she did not mention that she was arrested in Palestine 45 years ago, by an Israeli military court that detains Palestinians without charge – a court that has over 200 children in prison today and does not recognize the rights of Palestinians to due process.

Hatem Abudayyeh, who works with Rasmea Odeh and is one of the Anti-War 23 raided by the FBI three years ago, said outside the court, “Rasmea is guilty of nothing and this is a ridiculous charge. She is a 65-year-old leader of Palestinian, Arab-American and Muslim women in this country. The immigration charge is a pretext to go after her. Just as the U.S. government used political repression against African American, labor and other movements in the past, it is now repressing movements for social justice in our country again today. The U.S. and Israeli governments are angry because we are effective at organizing and changing attitudes of the people in this country about war and occupation in the Middle East. The boycott, divest and sanctions movement against Israeli Apartheid is growing and spreading; making a dent. The U.S. government is not able to criminalize the political activity of the Anti-War 23 and they will not be able to do it to Rasmea Odeh either!”

Another protester, Farah Erzouki, came with 12 students from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Erzouki, who is with Students for Justice in Palestine, said, “We represent the SJP both in Michigan and nationally and came to show solidarity and support for Rasmea Odeh. We oppose the U.S. government targeting people’s political beliefs. It affects groups like SJP on campus, with many chapters and leaders facing disciplinary charges for expressing their free speech or protesting on campus. So we plan to leaflet on campus and do educational forums. We oppose the repression of all people, but especially Palestinians.”

Students for a Democratic Society in Chicago sent Kait McIntyre to Detroit to speak at the rally: “Rasmea’s dedication to justice is shown by her leadership on the Arab Women’s Committee and leading work in the areas of civil liberties and immigration rights at the Arab American Action Network. We believe her work should be applauded, not condemned!”

Protesters came from Ann Arbor, Dearborn, Grand Rapids and Detroit, Michigan, as well as from Chicago and Milwaukee. Solidarity rallies also took place in Oakland, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, Chicago, Tampa, Gainesville, Philadelphia and Salt Lake City.

At today’s arraignment lawyer Jim Fennerty explained that Rasmea Odeh pled not guilty. The lawyers will begin to go through 600 pages of documents and plan for a trial. There will be more protests at the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, in Detroit, in the coming months. Detroit is Odeh’s original city of U.S. residence.

Before travelling home by bus with scores of supporters from Chicago, Rasmea was smiling and in good spirits. She joined the crowd in front of the court building, stating, “Thank you for your support. Thank you from me. It means a lot for me and my people!”

#DetroitMI #PalestineSolidarity #HomelandSecurity #HatemAbudayyeh #politicalRepression #AntiWar23 #InjusticeSystem #RasmeaOdeh

Minneapolis, MN – Chanting “Justice for Rasmea, drop the charges now,” about 35 protesters gathered in front of the Federal Building here, Nov. 13, to stand in solidarity with the widely respected Chicago Palestinian community leader Rasmea Odeh. The protest, which coincided with Odeh’s arraignment in Detroit’s federal court, was one of the solidarity actions held around the U.S. Odeh is facing a possible ten year sentence and deportation on a trumped up immigration charge.

Meredith Aby of the Minnesota Committee to Stop FBI Repression told the crowd, “Today we stand with Rasmea Odeh, and against those who would silence and imprison her. This attack is another example of the continuing repression of Palestinians and people who stand in solidarity with them. Homeland Security, the FBI, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the U.S. Attorney’s office are carrying out enforcement of the Israeli occupation of Palestine. We ask all those who have stood with us against the government attack on our organizing, to stand with us today to support Rasmea.” Aby is one of the anti-war and international solidarity activists whose homes were raided by the FBI in 2010.

Anti-war activist Jess Sundin also spoke to protesters, urging them build the defense campaign for Rasmea Odeh in the coming months.

#MinneapolisMN #PalestineSolidarity #HomelandSecurity #CommitteeToStopFBIRepression #politicalRepression #InjusticeSystem #RasmeaOdeh

Chicago, IL – Michael Deutsch of the National Lawyers Guild and the People’s Law Office spoke Nov. 12 about the case of Rasmea Yousef Odeh, a 65-year-old, Palestinian American, women's rights activist who was recently indicted and tomorrow faces arraignment Nov. 13 in U.S. District Court in Detroit. The immigration charge against Odeh could result in ten years in prison and deportation for violations in her application for citizenship.

Deutsch said the situation, “appears to be the Department of Homeland Security behaving in a discriminatory fashion, targeting Arabs, Muslims and Palestinians for selective prosecution.”

He recounted the history since 9/11 of the singling out of these communities by the U.S. government, especially in Chicago, including the case of Dr. Muhammad Salah, who the U.S. Attorney prosecuted for aiding people living under Israeli occupation. Salah’s trial featured Israeli agents testifying in secret with evidence obtained through torture.

Deutsch described the case of the 23 anti-war and international solidarity activists whose homes were raided and who were subpoenaed by the U.S. Attorney in 2010 for their efforts in support of Palestinians. The U.S. Attorney refuses to end this investigation. “The investigation of Rasmea Odeh seems to grow out of the case of the 23, because her colleague at the Arab American Action Network, Hatem Abudayyeh, was one of those raided and subpoenaed.”

From these experiences, Deutsch stated, “We know that the U.S. government works closely with Israeli officials, and therefore it is a certainty that the U.S. government knew of Odeh’s legal history at the time she emigrated and at the time she applied for citizenship. Why then is she being charged now after 20 years of model citizenship and good deeds in service of her community?”

Deutsch also cited a report by the ACLU from August of this year, “Muslims Need Not Apply,” which exposes the “Controlled Application Review and Resolution Program” of the Immigration Services. “This program targets Muslim, Arab, Middle Eastern and South Asian immigrants to deny them their requests for citizenship,” explained Deutsch.

These examples together were the basis of his statements of concern about discriminatory, selective prosecution.

Hatem Abudayyeh – a co-worker of Rasmea Odeh for almost ten years and who also represented the U.S. Palestinian Community Network and the Committee Against Political Repression – reminded everyone that Odeh was born in the same exact year that her people were pushed out of Palestine in 1948 and, because of that experience, she has dedicated her whole life to social justice. She is a mentor to dozens of activists and organizers across the country and leads a women's rights organization of over 600 members.

Abudayyeh also said that Odeh is receiving massive support from all across the world, including almost 100 organizations in the U.S. that have written letters or signed onto statements condemning the indictment.

“We are taking a charter bus and a car caravan to be with Rasmea tomorrow at her arraignment in Detroit. Hundreds from Michigan will meet us there. And hundreds more in Gainesville, Philadelphia, D.C., New York, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, Salt Lake City and other towns across the U.S. will be rallying in support of Rasmea and to demand that U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade drop the charges now.”

Margaret Jackson, interim Regional Director of the American Friends Service Committee, spoke against the racism of the U.S. government for this political attack on a Palestinian woman and stated, “As a person of color, I can tell you I’ve experienced racism in this society.” To show her support of the human rights work that Rasmea has done in Chicago, she declared, “I’m proud to stand with Rasmea Odeh.”

#ChicagoIL #PalestineSolidarity #HomelandSecurity #AntiRacism #HatemAbudayyeh #politicalRepression #AntiWar23 #InjusticeSystem #FBIRepression #RasmeaOdeh #MichaelDeutsch

Detroit, MI – The Committee to Stop FBI Repression and United States Palestinian Community Network will gather in Detroit to support Rasmea Odeh, a 65-year-old women's rights activist who faces 10 years in prison and deportation on trumped-up immigration charges.

Rasmea Odeh is scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, on Nov.13, for arraignment at 1 pm, and organizers are planning a support rally in front of the courthouse at noon. Odeh was arrested on Oct. 22 at her home in Evergreen Park, a suburb of Chicago, and charged with Unlawful Procurement of Naturalization, for allegedly untruthfully answering questions on her immigration application to the U.S. The court hearing is taking place in Detroit because it is her original city of U.S. residence.

A statement by rally organizers says, “The charge brought against her is another example of the escalation of federal law enforcement repression against Palestinians, Arabs and Muslims in this country.”

Odeh is a well-known and respected activist in the Palestinian American community of Chicago who has been honored for her social services and women’s empowerment work by the Chicago Cultural Alliance. Scores of organizations across the U.S. rallied to her cause after the arrest, and the media in the Arab world have also covered the news.

Supporters, including members of civil rights groups, faith-based institutions and Arab and Muslim organizations, as well as women's rights activists and civil liberties attorneys, are preparing to gather in Detroit, pack the courtroom and rally in her support. Solidarity activities are also being organized in Oakland, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Salt Lake City, Washington D.C. and New York.

“There has been a massive outpouring of love and support for Rasmea across the U.S. and the world,” says Rasmea’s friend and colleague Hatem Abudayyeh. “There is no justification for this political attack on a 65-year-old woman who has dedicated her life to progress and social justice. We will stand with her to fight these charges.”

#DetroitMI #PalestineSolidarity #HomelandSecurity #CommitteeToStopFBIRepression #InjusticeSystem #UnitedStatesPalestinianCommunityNetwork #WomensRights #RasmeaOdeh

Los Angeles, CA – Rasmea Odeh is a Palestinian American activist who is a target of repression. She was arrested on Oct. 22 by U.S. Homeland Security.

I am in full support of Rasmea and demand that the charges be dropped. Like me, she is a longtime activist in the immigrant rights movement, a community leader and a supporter of the struggle to free Palestine. She needs our backing and solidarity.

It was the solidarity of thousands of people that was important to my victory against repression following my arrest of May of 2011, and my year long struggle to stay free and active. It was the mobilizing with protests, call-in days, petitions, letters of support and packing the courtroom during the legal proceedings against me that led to our win against the state.

Each case is different but what is the same is the repressive state is using the police and courts to try to stop our struggle for Chicano or Palestinian self-determination.

We cannot let this real injustice happen to Rasmea. She has committed her life to making her community a better place. We need to stand with her.

I call on allies, supporters, organizations and activists in the immigrant rights, anti-war, labor and solidarity movements to show solidarity for Rasmea Odeh. Participate in the various activities and show your support at her Detroit court hearing on Nov. 13. Sign the petition and have your organization send a letter of support. Drop the charges now!

#LosAngelesCA #PalestineSolidarity #PoliticalPrisoners #HomelandSecurity #CarlosMontes #politicalRepression #InjusticeSystem #FBIRepression #RasmeaOdeh

A Palestinian woman, Rasmieh Odeh, was arrested at her home this morning, Oct. 22, by agents of the Department of Homeland Security.

She is charged with immigration fraud. Allegedly, in her application for citizenship, she didn’t mention that she was arrested in Palestine 45 years ago by an Israeli military court that detains Palestinians without charge – a court that has over 200 children in prison today and does not recognize the rights of Palestinians to due process.

The arrest today appears to be related to the case of the 23 anti-war activists subpoenaed to a grand jury in 2010. Well-known labor, community and international solidarity activists around the Midwest had their homes raided by the FBI when the U.S. attorney alleged that they had provided material support to foreign terrorist organizations in Palestine and Colombia.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Barry Jonas is leading the investigation against the 23. He was at the courtroom in Chicago this morning, consulting with the assistant U.S. attorney who was presenting the indictment to the judge. Jonas was also the prosecutor in the case of the Holy Land Five, the heads of the largest Muslim charity in the U.S. before 9/11. He was successful in getting prison sentences for as long as 65 years for the five men, who provided charity to children in Gaza.

The Committee to Stop FBI Repression (CSFR) denounces this attack as another example of the continuing repression of Palestinians and people who stand in solidarity with them. Homeland Security, the FBI, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the U.S. Attorney’s office now are carrying out enforcement of the Israeli occupation of Palestine.

Odeh will appear in court in Detroit on Nov. 1, where she will be represented by Jim Fennerty of the National Lawyers Guild. CSFR urges people to attend the proceedings at the Federal Court in Detroit in her defense.

Committee to Stop FBI Repression (CSFR) http://www.stopfbi.net/

#ChicagoIL #PalestineSolidarity #HomelandSecurity #PoliticalPrisoners #CommitteeToStopFBIRepression #politicalRepression #InjusticeSystem #RasmiehOdeh

Los Angeles, CA – Dozens of protesters gathered outside the CBS studios in west Los Angeles, July 24, to protest Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, who was on set for an episode of HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher. A picket line marched at the studio’s entrances, accompanied by musicians. Demonstrators denounced Napolitano, the former governor of Arizona, for her support of the racist, anti-immigrant Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County, Arizona.  The National Day Laborer Organizing Network organized the demonstration.

Sheriff Arpaio has been linked to many human rights abuses. He forces the immigrants he detains to work on chain gangs, live in sub-human conditions and wear pink undergarments in order to humiliate them [according to a recent article in the New Yorker magazine, Arpaio forced inmates to march in pink handcuffs, dressed only in their underwear, through town]. Arpaio is currently under investigation by the Department of Justice.

Protesters called on Maher to ask Napolitano about her connections with Sheriff Arpaio and her support of the 287(g) program, which allows local law enforcement officers (including Arpaio) to act as ICE agents and enforce immigration laws. This program all but guarantees racial profiling of Latinos and other nationalities; it allows police officers to stop people who seem ‘suspicious’ (i.e. non-white) and ask for ‘their papers.’

“We all hear Obama talking about the inclusion of immigrants,” said one of the protest organizers, “but at the same time that he makes these beautiful speeches, he has a secretary who is doing everything contrary to this message.”

#LosAngelesCA #InJusticeSystem #News #ChicanoLatino #RacismInTheCriminalJusticeSystem #JanetNapolitano #HomelandSecurity #SheriffJoeArpaio #NationalDayLaborerOrganizingNetwork