Quit Actions In Support of
Divestment and Boycott of Israel
“The
end of apartheid stands as one of the crowning
accomplishments of the last century, but we would not
have succeeded without the help of international
pressure. There is no greater testament to the basic
dignity of ordinary people everywhere than the
divestment movement of the 1980s. A
similar movement has taken shape recently, this time
aiming at an end to the Israeli occupation of
Palestinian territories. We should hope that average
citizens again rise to the occasion, since the obstacles
to a renewed movement are surpassed only by its moral
urgency..." Archbishop Desmond Tutu, 2002, http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Israel/Israel_Time_To_Divest.html
Since mid-2001, QUIT! has been working, along with
other Bay Area Palestine solidarity groups, to support
the international Palestinian-led campaign for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions
against Israel.
Some of the actions and campaigns we have initiated
include:
April 2007, Israeli
government money out of the LGBT Film Festival. For
at least five years, the Israeli consulate has been a
major sponsor of the San Francisco LGBT Film Festival,
probably the largest LGBT cultural event in the
world. In addition to accepting money from the
consulate, Frameline, presenter of the Film Festival,
cosponsors film showings with the consulate during the
year, and in 2005 was listed as a sponsor of
"Israel in the Park," an annual event in
support of Israel. In late March, over
100 members of the San Francisco Bay Area LGBT/queer
community sent a letter to Frameline, presenter of
the annual asking them to honor the cultural
boycott of Israel by discontinuing Israeli consulate
sponsorship of the film festival and not cosponsoring
events with the Israeli consulate. Read
the letter.
Valentine's
Day 2007,
we are proud to introduce our new Victoria's Secret
Weapon line! Most of Victoria's Secret's bras and
some of its other products are produced by the Israeli
textile giant Delta Galil. "Delta Galil is
the nation's largest manufacturer and marketer of
textiles and is one of the largest private-label
underwear manufacturers in the world," reports a
1999 article in The Jerusalem Post. "The company
was one of the first local firms to benefit from the
peace process, as it moved manufacturing to neighboring
countries with low labor costs." QUIT! launched its
campaign to show Victoria's customers who's under their
underwear with a fashion show at a VS outlet in San
Francisco. View
our lovely full-color catalogue! More
info about Delta Galil and Victoria's Secret.
October 2006, we
have produced a leaflet to distribute at showings of "Catch
a Fire," a film about resistance in South
Africa starring Tim Robbins and Derek Luke. We urge
other groups to distribute it as well. Download
the flier (MS Word) (view
as HTML)
October 2006, we protested an event hosted by
the Israeli consulate general at the San Francisco LGBT
Center featuring Israeli novelist Alon Hilu. Read
our flier asking queers to respect the cultural boycott.
2005-2006 QUIT led the international Boycott
World Pride campaign, protesting Interpride's
decision to hold the second World Pride celebration in
occupied Jerusalem. This campaign grew to
include dozens of queer organizations internationally
and had a significant effect on the way the event was
perceived in the media and in queer communities.
QUIT published op-eds, gave several radio interviews and
maintained a website which provided a focal point for
diverse boycott efforts. Learn
more about the World Pride Boycott.
Ongoing
Estee
Slaughter campaign, targeting the company owned
by Ron Lauder, a major supporter of Israel's policies of
dispossession and repression of Palestinians.
June 2003, QUIT dropped a
banner on stage at the end of the showing of "Yossi
and Jagger," at the San Francisco International
LGBT Film Festival. The film centers on a gay
relationship between Israeli soldiers on the Lebanon
border. Coverage
of the action. Read
the flier.
2002-3, campaign
to deshelve Israeli products at Rainbow
Grocery.
2003, Queer
Settlers landed on Starbucks, dubbing it "A Cafe
without People for People without a Cafe." Read
about this creative direct action which inspired
copycat settlements from New York to Australia.
For more information
about the international campaign for Boycott, Divestment
and Sanctions:
http://electronicintifada.net/bytopic/boycott-divestment-sanctions.shtml
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