The Movement 4 Black Lives (M4BL), an advocacy network of over 150 organizations, criticized Israeli President Isaac Herzog Tuesday for his planned visit to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), according to a post from the group’s Twitter account.
Herzog has been meeting with U.S. officials during his visit this week and made plans to stop at the NMAAHC Tuesday after speaking with President Joe Biden, according to the Times of Israel. M4BL, which supports defunding the police, reparations for slavery and decriminalization of prostitution and “drug-related offenses,” condemned the decision Tuesday on Twitter as an attempt by Herzog to “whitewash” the Jewish state’s “racism against Palestinians.” (RELATED: Ilhan Omar Defends Dem Rep Who Called Israel ‘Racist’: ‘Policing The Language Of Black And Brown Women’)
“Israeli President Isaac Herzog is planning a visit to @NMAAHC,” the post reads. “Let’s be clear: The visit is an attempt to whitewash Israel’s racism against Palestinians. It’s a blatant insult to the legacy of the Black struggle to end apartheid in South Africa. Herzog is not welcome here.”
Israeli President Isaac Herzog is planning a visit to @NMAAHC. Let’s be clear: The visit is an attempt to whitewash Israel’s racism against Palestinians. It’s a blatant insult to the legacy of the Black struggle to end apartheid in South Africa. Herzog is not welcome here. https://t.co/wMJXPlbemt
— Movement 4 Black Lives (@Mvmnt4BlkLives) July 18, 2023
On the same day, the House of Representatives passed a bipartisan resolution to condemn the belief that Israel is a “racist state.” The decision was prompted by Washington Democratic Rep. Pramila Jayapal’s comments during a July 15 conference where she called the Jewish state “racist” after protesters, calling for an end to human rights abuses against Palestinians, showed up at the event.
Jayapal apologized for her comments Monday, but Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota defended her colleague, arguing that criticism of Jayapal was an example of the suppression of “black and brown women,” according to her post on Twitter.
“We spend too much time policing the language of Black and brown women who speak out against oppression and not enough time ending the oppression of Black and brown people,” Omar wrote.
M4BL did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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