Jen + The Freedom Flotilla
Sasha Frere-Jones: Where are you right now? Where do you live?
Jennifer: I’m in Astoria.
SFJ: Should we say that we met doing direct actions?
JK: Why not?
SFJ: Where in California are you from?
JK: I'm from San Diego. I moved to New York almost ten years ago for nursing school and then I worked as an RN. I worked all through the COVID pandemic in the emergency room and then became a sexual assault forensic examiner. Healthcare is a radical profession, in general, and it’s only going to become more so. I had been on the periphery of DSA and, during Black Lives Matter, I would go to marches. I've been vocal on social media and in my communities for most of my life but I had never gotten arrested before this.
SFJ: Which was the first arrest?
JK: The first one was outside Dan Goldman’s office in Brooklyn. I showed up and jumped in there with them. I asked someone right before, “What happens if you get arrested?” And they said “Oh, nothing. You just get taken to jail and then released.” “It’s not a misdemeanor?” “No.” So I thought, “Fuck it, I'm getting arrested tonight.” I was a bit worried in the beginning, because I was still finishing my nurse practitioner degree and didn’t know about licensing and if it would affect that. Once I did my research, though, I saw it wouldn’t have any bearing on it.
It’s a tiny sacrifice next to what the people in Palestine are going through. This genocide is all on the American taxpayer’s dime and it’s largely being carried out with American weapons. As a healthcare worker, seeing the conditions of the healthcare facilities over there, seeing what the healthcare workers are having to go through? Over 300 healthcare workers have been killed. It’s pushed me even more, seeing how most of my colleagues have been completely silent. It’s very disappointing. I worked all through the pandemic with these people, and that was a crazy time, especially in New York City. My colleagues were very vocal about Black Lives Matter and were in the streets with us — but for Palestine, it’s crickets.
I don't know how people can deal with it, hearing that they are doing C-sections on patients without anesthesia. How are they not called to action or called to pressure their professional organizations or their representatives to do something about Palestine? It’s crazy to me. I can't imagine operating on a patient without pain meds, and hearing about children undergoing limb amputations without anesthesia — and there’s just silence. So that's pushed me even more to it. I feel like I have to do more, say more because the average American is silent. The average healthcare worker is silent too.
I got a lot more involved on social media after seeing the mass rape claims. I felt like I had to use my training and speak out. So many people were debunking these claims, so I wasn't the only one, but I didn't see anyone with my background saying anything. It was just crazy to me to see the American media eat it up and what they were pointing to as evidence was complete bullshit. Anyone with any type of medical background, especially forensics would know that.
SFJ: How did you know so quickly?
JK: I read the New York Times article and saw it was being heralded as this concrete evidence for these rape claims. Obviously nothing justifies genocide, nothing justifies what we've seen, but that story was being used as justification. The things they were pointing to as their sources, like the architect saying that they saw bodies with evidence of sexual assault? An architect has no training to do that but they're saying that they were able to visually confirm bodily fluids? There was no forensic evidence. I thought, “Who the fuck green-lighted this article?”
JK: The reason I was even able to get on this flotilla was because I got involved with CODEPINK. I saw a lot of their actions on social media and was inspired. I was trying to do all the things in New York but I had this desire to go down to DC and confront these people who seemed to not give one single fuck about innocent lives. Confronting these politicians radicalized me even more because, I mean, not only do they not respect Palestinian lives but they don't respect Americans either. They don't even give us the time of day. They don't represent the American people and obviously they've been bought and paid for.
SFJ: Who were you down there interacting with? Who was the politician you were going?
JK: CODEPINK is known for their bird-dogging: you’re in the halls recording and you just confront them about why they haven’t called for a ceasefire for example. I've spoken to probably dozens of these politicians now and I’ve had maybe one or two positive interactions, tops. Either they just ignore you or they say some really wild, racist, crazy shit. I had one interaction in February that went viral on social media with the congressman from Tennessee, Andy Ogles.
SFJ: What did he say?
JK: I asked something like “You don't care about the children's lives?” And he said, “You know what? I think we should kill them all.” I was shocked at that point that they would say that openly, but I guess nothing shocks me at this point now.
SFJ: You remember when Israel was still pretending it didn’t bomb hospitals?
JK: They're bragging about it now. Just seeing what they did to Al-Shifa Hospital? There could never be any justification for that. I have somebody in my immediate family who I'm not even speaking to anymore over this, because that was their argument. “Well, they're hiding Hamas in the hospital, what do you expect?” As a healthcare worker, I'm trying to make the connection to them. “So you're saying if the Unabomber was in the hospital I work at, it would be okay to just bomb the entire hospital and kill everyone?” That does not make any sense. For so many Americans, it's like, oh, it's justified because it's “over there."
SFJ: The framing of the question is a classic interrogation technique: “When did you stop beating your wife?” The topic becomes “Hamas or no Hamas — please check all boxes without Hamas” and “Rape or no rape? Please determine!” rather than the discussion of the larger and longer and history of violence that would lead most people to fight back. I mean, anyone I’ve ever met. What was the Internet Hippo tweet? Here it is:
JK: If any of us were born into that situation, we would be part of the resistance too. You're not giving people any other option.
SFJ: I begin hallucinating when I think about the gymnastics people go through, referencing Judea and Samaria when they live precisely zero percent of their lives in accordance with Biblical references.
JK: From the moment I learned about Palestine—which is over 10 years ago now at this point in grad school—there was no question. It’s just so abundantly clear, this is obviously wrong. I guess I've always been kind of active on my Instagram and when I posted about Palestine in the past, I would get attacked by Zionists that were acquaintances of mine, friends or colleagues or whatever. But this time, in October, I thought, “No, fuck all that. I'm just going to be clear with what I'm posting about.” Before that, I really was afraid of these Zionists but then I just accepted it. I'm going to lose friends and I'm going to lose family members, whatever, but who cares? There's no justification for this. If I get attacked, so be it. If they come for me, I'm still going to speak up for Palestine.
I was able to find some friends by looking through people's stories to see who was posting about Palestine. There are relationships I rekindled through Palestine because I saw that they were posting about Palestine when not many were and I found my little tribe.
From there, we started going to protests and went to DC. I needed to be out in the streets. I needed to be doing something. I was called to it so deeply. I had a friend who I used to work who was very pro-Palestine thankfully. The last time I had seen her actually was we were campaigning for Bernie Sanders, right before COVID. We reconnected through this and she had a Palestinian film night at her place in Brooklyn. One of the women I met that night was going to be part of the action that shut down the airport and that’s how I got put in an affinity group, through her.
SFJ: Do you remember which airport action it was?
JK: That was right before Christmas. I was dreading the holidays because there is somebody in my immediate family who is a raging Zionist and had accused me of being an “antisemitic terrorist supporter” and she was going to be there. Well, I got COVID, and it was kind of a blessing. But I knew I had to get involved in these actions.
One positive thing that's come out of this are the connections and community with people who care about things that matter.
SFJ: And that leads to the Freedom Flotilla.
JK: I guess it started by getting to know Medea Benjamin and Ann Wright in DC. A friend sent me the Flotilla application maybe a couple weeks ago. I had never heard of the Flotilla but when I saw Ann Wright was one of the steering members, I was in. I would follow Ann Wright anywhere. I trust this woman with my life.
SFJ: Explain who Ann Wright is?
JK: Ann Wright is one of the most awe-inspiring people I’ve met. I mean, all of the women who lead CODEPINK are because most of them are like in their seventies and they're not sitting their ass at home. They're going out every single day and doing something for Palestine. They're prominent anti-war activists. It just gives me a lot of strength. If they're out there every day running up and down, doing X, Y, Z, A, B, C, we who are forty years younger have no excuse.
Ann Wright was a US Army colonel, then became a diplomat in the State Department. She was one of the three people who resigned in 2003 in protest over the Iraq invasion. Since then, she's dedicated her life to being an anti-war activist. She’s gone on the flotilla many times before. She’s one of my favorite people to lobby with because when these staffers or congressmen or whoever start talking their US war machine BS and how we must continue, she’s able to say, “I’m a former US Army colonel.” Then they salute her and shut up and listen. Palestine has brought so many of us in from all different walks of life and that’s been really beautiful to me.
SFJ: You have a gleam in your eye when you talk about Ann.
JK: They’re very inspiring to me. When I'm speaking to these soulless demons, I am a little bit spicy. But nothing fazes Ann and Medea. They are so even-keeled. People can say the most out-of-pocket shit to them and it doesn’t make them stumble. They’re just very peaceful and calm. I just got arrested with an elderly gentleman this past week in DC and he's probably in his eighties or something. I have so much respect for them. They could just be sitting at home enjoying the good life and they're out here fighting for us.
SFJ: Salute.
JK: Yeah, literally salute.
SFJ: So, a few weeks ago, you filled out the application for the flotilla?
JK: Yes. When Ann called me, I was still unsure. I get super seasick and there were all these little excuses in my head. But after speaking to Anne, I felt good about my decision. I was also able to meet other people in the flotilla. When I heard that Medea was going as well, that made me even more confident that this was the right decision. It just felt like there were a lot of things that led up to me being able to go, this being put into my lap.
I care so deeply about Palestine. As a healthcare worker, as an American, as a white woman, I felt that this was the least I could do. Seeing the absolute horror of what is going on and how just more and more billions are being sent and more weapons — nothing else matters to me at this point, really.
Reading the history of the Flotilla, this is the 36th mission they’ve been on. There are people from 30 different countries who are coming along with us. Hundreds of participants will be going on multiple different ships. They really know what they're doing. It's a well-oiled machine, they've done it so many times before. They do a lot of training with us before we go.The main goal of this, aside from bringing 5,500 tons of aid, is to highlight the illegal siege. I mean, Gaza’s been under a complete siege for over 17 years now at this point. We are bringing awareness to that and educating people — we might create a media spectacle over it. And that's kind of the point.
SFJ: Who is The Freedom Flotilla Coalition?
JK: It's a coalition of multiple different organizations from all over the world. The first few ones that they did, it was just one ship going on its own. And then they started to realize we need to make this a flotilla, multiple ships for people’s safety. I think the one in 2010, they hijacked and murdered 10 participants. The IOF usually comes onto the boat and arrests everyone, kidnaps everyone.
Usually the flotilla makes stops at all these different ports along the way to have events about Palestine and educate people about the flotilla and it’s goals. I think they're doing another one in the summer that's more along those lines. But this one is just heading straight to Gaza. This is obviously an emergency situation. People are, and children are literally starving to death, and that's manmade. We were supposed to leave last week, but it got delayed.
SFJ: You were saying yesterday, you guys expect to get arrested, right?
JK: They run through every possible scenario in our training and they make it as lifelike as possible. So that's one of the possible scenarios, but we hope to make it to Gaza.
SFJ: So the idea is that even if you get arrested, the aid and the food and everything will still somehow get to Gaza?
JK: I mean, past flotillas suggest that even if the boats get all hijacked, the aid will make it there eventually. Maybe not all of it, because the Israeli regime is going to do everything that they can to I guess not allow it to make it there. But with international attention and the media putting pressure on them, essentially the aid was able to get there eventually.
SFJ: What is on the boats?
JK: The cargo ship has 5,500 tons of medical aid, medical equipment, medical supplies, food, and also building materials, cement. A lot of these things are illegal or the Israeli regime doesn't even let in through whatever aid port they deem appropriate.
SFJ: How long does it take the boat to get there, once you board?
JK: Three days.
SFJ: You've mentioned hijackings and murders. You were talking to your mom yesterday. How worried are you?
JK: I feel at peace about it. One of the things we say in the direct actions we do, is that we keep each other safe. There are hundreds of people going from 30 different countries. I am sure I’m going to meet some of the most amazing people. We’re going to do everything we can to keep each other safe. Some things are out of our control but whatever we’re able to do for each other, that’s what we'll do.
I feel anxious now to just get there and get on with it. We want to obviously stop the genocide right now, today, yesterday. As I've tried to explain to my mom, in any type of action, there’s always some sort of risk. I was listening to a Norman Finkelstein interview the other day, with Marc Lamont Hill, and they were having this conversation about nonviolence and what other options Palestinians had. And Norman was making the point that unfortunately nonviolence was not working for them since they were not given a platform, any attention or even any respect to their movement, and they had done so many nonviolent actions previously. So I was thinking about that when my mom was saying to me, “Oh, there's so many other things you could do. Why are you doing this? Why are you unnecessarily putting yourself at risk?” But we have been doing all the things, writing our reps, calling our reps, emailing, going to DC, doing actions, going to protests, educating ourselves, getting arrested. We’ve been doing all of that and nothing has changed. It’s only gotten worse. And as time goes on, there are more risks we should take. There’s so much on the line here and it’s up to people with a conscience and people who care to put ourselves on the line, especially as Americans, since we are the ones funding this. There’s always going to be some sort of fear involved in an action like this, but it’s the least I can do, considering I've seen over six months now of starving children being slaughtered. It’s a minuscule risk to me. That’s how it feels.
I've had so many people in my life say “Oh, you need to watch what you say because you're a healthcare worker.” Obviously that would be awful if I lost my source of income and I understand that’s what is keeping many people silent. But that’s not even a real fear compared to what the people in Palestine are going through. The amazing thing about social media is we’ve been able to see for ourselves what is going on over there and the information isn’t all filtered through the western media - so we see what Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank are going through. That’s real risk. The fear of getting bombed etc. I’m not worried about getting put on Canary Mission or whatever. That’s irrelevant. There are way more important things for us to worry about. I want to fight these motherfuckers. Look what’s happening to these people, children even, and the world collectively doesn’t give a fuck.
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