Obama is silent -- Marcos, McKinney and Sheehan are not

Calling for the peoples embargo of Israel and a shout from around the world

By Brenda Norrell

EZLN photo

SAN FRANCISCO -- While President-elect Obama remained silent on Israel's bombing and murder of children in Palestine, Subcomandante Marcos, Former Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney and Cindy Sheehan were not.

Speaking in Chiapas at the Digna Rabia international gathering, Subcomandante Marcos spoke out against the atrocities. Marcos said the government of Israel continues its advance of death and destruction.

Marcos said the guns have been pointed at the homes of civilians, where men, women, children and elderly live, not soldiers. Israel's professional army is murdering a defenseless population. Meanwhile, the United Nations has already proven itself useless.

Marcos said the people can not be silent, when their voices could save lives; even if it is just the one life of a Palestinian boy. Perhaps their voices can stop one bullet from being fired at the chest of a boy or girl.

While the voices of the Zapatistas might be but a murmur, he said if all the voices of the world merge, this murmur will become a shout that they will hear in Gaza.

"Do our shouts halt any bomb? Does our word save one Palestinian child's life? We think so. Maybe we won't halt a bomb, and maybe our word will not be transformed into a armor-plated shield. But possibly, it might succeed in uniting with others, transforming into a murmur, then into a loud voice, and later into a shout they can hear in Gaza. We, Zapatistas of the EZLN, know how important it is, in the middle of destruction and death, to hear words of strength."

Former Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney of Georgia said that Americans are still waiting for President-elect Obama to respond to the atrocities of the bloodied bodies of children in Palestine.

McKinney said Obama "roared onto the political scene like a lamb, but has remained to date as silent as a lamb."

Speaking with Al-Jazeera today, McKinney described being onboard the Free Gaza ship "Dignity" enroute to Gaza. She said when Israelis rammed the boat and disabled it on Dec. 30, she prepared for death. The crew of journalists and doctors, however, survived, and she thanked Lebanon for rescuing those onboard.

Further, McKinney said the people are in the streets protesting Israel's atrocities in the United States, but the US government is not listening.

In San Francisco, Cindy Sheehan writes with the passion of a mother who has already lost her son in an unjust war.

"My eyes are red from crying as I write this," Sheehan said of the images of dead children in Palestine.

"The images of bloody babies and maimed children and mothers and fathers wailing in pain are too much to bear for me.

"Today, the defense forces of Yahweh's 'Chosen People' bombed two UN refugee centers," she said, adding that Israel knew these were refugee centers. Dozens of innocent children were killed.

"Mr. 'One President at a Time' famously said: 'I am not against war, I am against dumb wars,'" she said.

Sheehan said Obama has made it clear who he is supporting.

"I am here to tell Obama, that war is not dumb: IT'S EVIL! All war is evil. From the war on poor people of color here in American streets to the genocidal wars of aggression against Arab peoples waged by America and Israel, all war is completely, absolutely, incontrovertibly and atrociously evil. Until Congress and the Knesset and respective administrations come down off of their muy macho and extremely racist perches of death and destruction, we have no 'hope' at all for any kind of profound and positive 'change.'

"George Bush is a lame duck idiot who has always supported death and destruction and welcomed both Republican and Democratic allegiance to the war machine. He is finally leaving and we are overjoyed, but should we celebrate an incoming administration who feels it's okay to comment its brains out about the economy, but when it comes to sticking up for the helpless sitting ducks in Gaza he cops-out with lightening speed and amazing alacrity.

"I am sick, sick, sick of babies, children and other innocents paying the price of greedy and bloodthirsty governments," Sheehan said.

"At the rate Israel is slaughtering Gazans, hundreds of more will die and thousands more will be wounded when doctors have no medicine or supplies; and tens of thousands are frightened and starving while Obama remains silent. Silence is complicity and if we follow the lead of our misleaders, we are complicit also."

Sheehan said she will call on the supervisors of the City of San Francisco to divest of any holding or investments in Israeli companies. To stop apartheid, she urges others to do the same in thier own ciites to halt the US/Israeli war machine.

"How many babies must be massacred before we get righteously outraged and decide to carry the moral water for this fascist government and speak with one voice crying out for peace?"

Sheehan's message is titled, "We are all Gazans," which follows the sentiment of the Zapatistas, "We are all Zapatistas."