Rep. Pramila Jayapal, the head of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, on Saturday condemned Israel as a racist state, warning activists that there is an organized opposition against progressive critics of Israel’s policy towards the Palestinians.
The sharp criticism from the lawmaker from Washington state marks among the highest-level condemnations of Israel, as several members of her caucus plan to boycott Israel President Isaac Herzog’s address to a joint session of Congress later this week.
Speaking on a panel at Netroots Nation, an annual progressive activist conference in Chicago, Jayapal was addressing pro-Palestinian attendees interrupting the session.
It’s a bit of a conspiracy theory, maybe, but I definitely feel that Israel and Zionists don’t necessarily do absolutely everything they could to prevent people conflating Jews and Israel.
I’ve heard other diaspora Jews complain before that they feel Israel is a bit too presumptuous in speaking for them.