Twin Cities stands with Rasmea Odeh
Minneapolis bannering part of National Week of Action to Defend Odeh
Minneapolis, MN – About 30 people gathered on May Day Plaza, in the West Bank neighborhood here to demand Justice for Palestinian American leader Rasmea Odeh, Sept. 10. Odeh is currently facing prison and deportation on a trumped-up immigration charge. Participants in the protest held signs supporting Odeh and Palestinian flags.
Mick Kelly, of the Committee to Stop FBI Repression, urged the protesters to step up the campaign to get justice for Odeh and to attend her appeal hearing in Cincinnati Oct. 14.
Meredith Aby-Keirstead, of the Twin Cities-based Anti-War Committee said, “We are close to the anniversary of Sept. 24, 2010 where five years ago the FBI raided the homes of anti-war leaders in the Midwest – including mine – and the offices of the Anti-War Committee. We learned that day that we were subject to a federal investigation into our anti-war organizing which they claimed was really ‘material support for terrorism.’ I wish the story ended there. But Rasmea's case is connected to ours. Just like Carlos Montes' case we are standing with her.”
Aby-Keirstead continued, “Rasmea's case is important – not just because it is an example of an injustice which must be reversed – but because it is an attack on the Palestinian national movement in the U.S. Israel is the largest recipient of U.S. aid in the whole world. Israel uses this aid to kill Palestinians, continue their apartheid policies, to steal and occupy Palestinian land. It is essential that we challenge U.S. support for Israel. In order to that we need to defend the Palestinians and Palestine solidarity activists working for a free Palestine here. By defending Rasmea – not only are we defending a hero of Palestine – but we are defending our own movement.”
The Minneapolis solidarity action to support Rasmea Odeh was one of the many taking place across the country this week.