Emmanuelle Berdugo
Overview
Emmanuelle Berdugo helped lead an IfNotNow (INN) anti-Israel event supporting violent protesters, along with activists from American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) and MPower Change.She also spoke at an INN event that repurposed Jewish rituals, protested against the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and created an online fundraiser for INN.
Berdugo indicated on Facebook that she “went” to events featuring anti-Israel agitators and demonized Israel.
As of 2016, Berdugo was a leader with INN Bay Area.
As of June 2019, Berdugo’s LinkedIn page said she was president and board member at J Street U from January 2012 to June 2013.
As of June 2019, Berdugo’s LinkedIn page said she was an associate at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP since October 2018 and that she received her law degree from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law, in 2018. She worked as a legal intern for the Association for Civil Rights in Israel in Tel Aviv, during the summer of 2016.
Supporting Violent Protesters
On May 24, 2018, Berdugo spoke representing [00:01:44] INN at an event “in solidarity with the Palestinian victims of last week's massacre in Gaza,” titled: “Iftar in the Streets for Gaza.”The event was organized by INN together with MPower Change, co-founded by Linda Sarsour, and AMP, which has been accused of providing a platform for anti-Semitism and of connections to Hamas.
At the event, AMP founder Hatem Bazian said [00:00:31]: “MPower, IfNotNow and AMP are coming together to craft a new path for change.” He went on to say [00:07:35]: “we want to celebrate the fact that a new broad coalition is coming together.”
Activists recited [00:13:35] the Mourner's Kaddish prayer for Palestinians who had been killed in the Gaza border protests.
The Jewish ritual of the Mourner’s Kaddish is a prayer customarily reserved for close relatives or Jews murdered for being Jews.
Berdugo claimed [00:02:26] that Gazans had marched “in civil resistance, demanding basic human rights” and led [00:04:26] attendees in chanting.
On April 13, 2018, Berdugo led [00:09:51] in an INN protest in San Francisco, in support of the Great March of Return.
On March 30, 2018, some 30,000 Palestinians in Gaza approached Israel’s border to take part in “Land Day Protests” or the “Great March of Return.” The March was organized and funded by Hamas as a campaign of violent protests along Israel’s border.
Activists blocked the doors of United States Senator Dianne Feinstein’s office for over two hours, forcing the building to close for the duration of the protest.
The activists also recited [00:05:55] the Mourner’s Kaddish prayer for Palestinians killed during the Great March of Return protests. INN stated: “The demonstrators called on Feinstein to condemn Israeli violence against Palestinian protesters in Gaza” and referred to “The Great March of Return” as “a protest which has not injured or endangered Israeli soldiers or civilians.”
At the event, Muhammad Abu Amro was also eulogized [00:36:40]. Hamas’ military wing, the al-Qassam Brigades identified Abu Amro as one of their “martyrs” and posted a photo of him armed and in uniform on both their website and on Twitter.
INN Bay Area member Amitai Ben-Abba eulogized [00:34:32] photojournalist Yasser Murtaja. Murtaja was reportedly a Hamas spy who useddrones to film Israeli positions. He was shot on April 6, 2018 as he filmed the 2018 March of Return protest in Gaza.
On April 13, 2018, Berdugo led [00:09:51] in an INN protest in San Francisco, in support of the Great March of Return.
On March 30, 2018, some 30,000 Palestinians in Gaza approached Israel’s border to take part in “Land Day Protests” or the “Great March of Return.” The March was organized and funded by Hamas as a campaign of violent protests along Israel’s border.
Activists blocked the doors of United States Senator Dianne Feinstein’s office for over two hours, forcing the building to close for the duration of the protest.
The activists also recited [00:05:55] the Mourner’s Kaddish prayer for Palestinians killed during the Great March of Return protests. INN stated: “The demonstrators called on Feinstein to condemn Israeli violence against Palestinian protesters in Gaza” and referred to “The Great March of Return” as “a protest which has not injured or endangered Israeli soldiers or civilians.”
At the event, Muhammad Abu Amro was also eulogized [00:36:40]. Hamas’ military wing, the al-Qassam Brigades identified Abu Amro as one of their “martyrs” and posted a photo of him armed and in uniform on both their website and on Twitter.
INN Bay Area member Amitai Ben-Abba eulogized [00:34:32] photojournalist Yasser Murtaja. Murtaja was reportedly a Hamas spy who useddrones to film Israeli positions. He was shot on April 6, 2018 as he filmed the 2018 March of Return protest in Gaza.
Repurposing Jewish Rituals
On October 9, 2016, Berdugo spoke at an INN Bay Area event to mark the beginning of the Jewish High Holidays, Rosh Hashanah. The event called upon Jews in D.C., Philadelphia, Boston, Los Angeles, Chicago and the Bay Area to take “communal responsibility for 50 years of occupation.”Activists paraded [00:00:52] outside the Jewish Community Federation building on Steuart Street in San Francisco while holding signs that read: “Heed The Call” and “Which Side Are You On?” declared [00:01:43] “I am guilty!” and claimed [00:01:46] that Israel’s actions “violate Jewish values.”
The participants chanted: [00:02:15] “we’re ready, we’re coming!!” and acted out Jewish High Holiday rituals traditionally associated with repentance, such as blowing [00:02:29] the Shofar [00:01:40] and reciting “Ashamnu” — confession.
On September 29, 2016, INN released a video of its members performing the “Tashlikh” ritual to “repent for our sins” and for the sins of Jewish institutions. Tashlikh is a Jewish ritual performed on the Jewish New Year and is used to symbolically cast away sins.
INN described the ritual as part of their “#HeedTheCall series of actions… using the rituals and themes of the [Jewish] High Holidays.”
At the event, Berdugo said [00:00:34] “We must heed the call of the shofar, to awaken our communities’ souls.”
On April 21, 2016, Berdugo participated in INN Bay Area’s Liberation Seder. Activists led a ceremony with a Jewish ritual [00:15:24] in which they poured out drops of wine from a glass. At the same time, activists listed what they described [00:13:38] as the “plagues of the occupation.”
A Seder is a Jewish Passover ritual, that involves telling the story of the Israelites’ exodus from slavery in ancient Egypt and their travels to the Promised Land.
The Facebook event’s description said: “For too many years, Jews around the world have celebrated our own freedom while actively denying freedom and dignity to the Palestinian people.” The group blocked the street in front of the Jewish Federation East Bay building in Berkley, CA.
Protesting AIPAC
On March 19, 2017, Berdugo participated in an INN protest against AIPAC in Los Angeles.The stated mission of AIPAC is to “strengthen, protect and promote the U.S.-Israel relationship in ways that enhance the security of the United States and Israel.”
Berdugo also indicated on Facebook that she “went” to a March 26, 2017 INN protest outside the Washington D.C. venue of the AIPAC Policy Conference. Protestors chained themselves to the entrance of the conference center. Several hundred protesters also marched and chanted for hours outside the venue.
Four INN activists purchased tickets to the conference as AIPAC delegates, in order to gain access to the building. Once inside, the INN activists, dropped [00:00:37] banners from the center’s third floor, stating that they “reject AIPAC and the occupation,” before being removed by security.
Four INN activists purchased tickets to the conference as AIPAC delegates, in order to gain access to the building. Once inside, the INN activists, dropped [00:00:37] banners from the center’s third floor, stating that they “reject AIPAC and the occupation,” before being removed by security.
INN Activity
On December 20, 2017, Berdugo created a fundraising page for INN on Facebook.Berdugo indicated on Facebook that she “went” to a June 11, 2017, INN Bay area protest titled: “No Celebration For Occupation,” against a Friends of the Israeli Defense Forces (FIDF) event.
The protest’s Facebook description said the event was held “to honor the IDF soldiers who were the first troops to enter the Old City of Jerusalem during the 1967 war,” which INN characterized as “the beginning of 50 years of military Occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip.”
The protest’s Facebook description also said: “We will not stand idly by while FIDF and our community commemorates this moment without rejecting the occupation.”
On February 8, 2017, Berdugo appeared in a group photo of INN Bay Area activists attending an INN training session.
On November 20, 2016, she was also tagged in a photo on Facebook of INN activists at a training session.
On November 6, 2015, Berdugo was tagged in a Facebook post by INN leader Yonah Lieberman thanking her and other INN activists “for doing the hard work right now to make this possible.”
On July 24, 2014, during Israel’s Operation Protective Edge (OPE), Berdugo was tagged in a Facebook post of an INN event that called for Israel to “stop the war on Gaza” and where activists said Kaddish “for those killed in Gaza and Israel.”
Israel commenced Operation Protective Edge (OPE) in July 2014, to stop rocket fire targeting Israeli civilians and to destroy Hamas attack tunnels.
Berdugo indicated on Facebook that she “went” to a July 28, 2014, INN event to “recite the Mourner's Kaddish and read the names of the victims of the violence in Gaza.”
Berdugo indicated on Facebook, also during OPE, that she “went” to an August 4, 2014 event called: “If Not Now Observes Tisha b’Av: Mourning Destruction in Israel & Palestine.”
The event’s Facebook description said: “... as we mourn the dehumanizing oppression our people has suffered, tonight we also mourn the dehumanizing oppression we are currently enabling and inflicting upon Palestinians.”
Events with Anti-Israel Agitators
Berdugo indicated on Facebook that she “went” to a March 8, 2017, SJP event featuring Hatem Bazian from AMP and speakers from Al Haq.Hatem Bazian is the founder of the anti-Israel organizations Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and American Muslims for Palestine (AMP). Bazian has a decades-long history of incitement and of using classic anti-Semitic tropes to demonize Israel.
Berdugo indicated on Facebook that she “went” to an October 2, 2015 talk by Bassem Tamimi, titled: “Our Destiny is to Resist,” hosted by SJP at UC Berkeley
Berdugo indicated on Facebook that she “went” to an April 28, 2015 talk by Haneen Zoabi, titled: “Israel, Racism, and Apartheid: An Insider's View,” hosted by Columbia SJP.
Berdugo held a sign that said: “Bennett: stop Settlement Construction. END THE OCCUPATION.”
Another sign at the event said: “I’ve killed lots of Arabs in my life - and there’s no problem with that - Naftali Bennett.”
INN claims to take no position on the BDS movement and that it is “open to any who seek to shift the American Jewish public away from the status quo that upholds the Occupation.” However, INN organizes with pro-BDS, anti-Israel organizations including American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) and Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP).
Twitter: https://twitter.com/emmaberdugo [Private]
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emmanuelle-berdugo-1078a387/
Bassem Tamimi has exploited young children as political props in staged confrontations with Israeli soldiers. In 2011, he was jailed for organizing violent rallies and inciting minors to commit violent crimes such as rock-throwing.
Tamimi’s United States visa was revoked in 2015, for his failure to disclose his prior arrest and conviction. Prior to the revocation of his U.S. visa, Tamimi delivered a controversial presentation to third-graders in Ithaca, New York. The presentation was geared to foster hatred of Israel and Tamimi concluded by encouraging [00:11:29] the children to become “freedom fighters for Palestine.”
Berdugo indicated on Facebook that she “went” to an April 28, 2015 talk by Haneen Zoabi, titled: “Israel, Racism, and Apartheid: An Insider's View,” hosted by Columbia SJP.
Haneen Zoabi, a former member of the Israeli Knesset, has a long history of inciting violence. In 2014, she was suspended from the legislature after defending the kidnapping of three Israeli teenagers by the terror group Hamas, and who were later found executed in a field. In 2015, a criminal investigation was opened against Zoabi after she reportedly condoned anti-Israel violence and called for a new intifada.
Demonizing Israel
On November 17, 2013, Berdugo attended a protest organized by All That’s Left: Anti Occupation Collective. The event protested a speech in New York by Israel’s then-Economy and Trade Minister Naftali Bennett.Berdugo held a sign that said: “Bennett: stop Settlement Construction. END THE OCCUPATION.”
Another sign at the event said: “I’ve killed lots of Arabs in my life - and there’s no problem with that - Naftali Bennett.”
IfNotNow (INN)
IfNotNow (INN) is an anti-Israel organization founded in 2014, in response to Israel’s Operation Protective Edge (OPE) against Hamas.
INN claims to be “young Jews angered by the overwhelmingly hawkish response of American Jewish institutions” to OPE. INN presents three demands on its website: “Stop the War on Gaza, End the Occupation, and Freedom and Dignity for All.”
INN defines “the Occupation as the military rule over Palestinians in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza,” which is land Israel has controlled for nearly 50 years since the 1967 Six-Day War. However, INN leaders have made [00:34:32] the claim [00:13:49] at protests that the occupation is 70 years long, referring to Israel’s founding in 1948.
INN actions have aimed to demonize [00:38:13] Israel, harass [00:05:44] mainstream American Jewish organizations like the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and decrease support for Israel among American Jews.
INN has used “public action and imaginative ritual” to achieve its goals, including disruptions where activists were arrested.
One of the high-profile arrests occurred at a May 2018 disruption at a U.S. Senator’s office in Washington, D.C. to protest legislation against the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.
At the same incident, INN used [00:07:17] the Jewish ritual of the Mourner’s Kaddish prayer to mourn [00:09:10] protesters who were killed during the Hamas-organized and funded Great March of Return riots on the Israel-Gaza border.
INN activists have also staged and promoted walk-offs from Birthright Israel trips, a heritage trip to Israel for young Jewish adults from across the world.
INN claims to be “young Jews angered by the overwhelmingly hawkish response of American Jewish institutions” to OPE. INN presents three demands on its website: “Stop the War on Gaza, End the Occupation, and Freedom and Dignity for All.”
INN defines “the Occupation as the military rule over Palestinians in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza,” which is land Israel has controlled for nearly 50 years since the 1967 Six-Day War. However, INN leaders have made [00:34:32] the claim [00:13:49] at protests that the occupation is 70 years long, referring to Israel’s founding in 1948.
INN actions have aimed to demonize [00:38:13] Israel, harass [00:05:44] mainstream American Jewish organizations like the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and decrease support for Israel among American Jews.
INN has used “public action and imaginative ritual” to achieve its goals, including disruptions where activists were arrested.
One of the high-profile arrests occurred at a May 2018 disruption at a U.S. Senator’s office in Washington, D.C. to protest legislation against the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.
At the same incident, INN used [00:07:17] the Jewish ritual of the Mourner’s Kaddish prayer to mourn [00:09:10] protesters who were killed during the Hamas-organized and funded Great March of Return riots on the Israel-Gaza border.
INN activists have also staged and promoted walk-offs from Birthright Israel trips, a heritage trip to Israel for young Jewish adults from across the world.
INN claims to take no position on the BDS movement and that it is “open to any who seek to shift the American Jewish public away from the status quo that upholds the Occupation.” However, INN organizes with pro-BDS, anti-Israel organizations including American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) and Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP).
AMP
American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) was founded by UC Berkeley Professor Hatem Bazian as a vehicle to generate mainstream support in the United States for the Palestinian national cause.
On its website, the organization lists Bazian as the chairman of its national board and describes itself as “a national education and grassroots-based organization, dedicated to educating the American public about Palestine and its rich cultural, historical and religious heritage.”
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has accused AMP of promoting “extreme anti-Israel views and has at times provided a platform for anti-Semitism under the guise of educating Americans” about Palestinians. The ADL further stated that AMP is directly involved in campus-based anti-Israel activity through Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP).
Prior to founding the AMP in 2006, Dr. Bazian created SJP together with fellow UC Berkeley Professor Snehal Shingavi in 2001. The close working relationship between AMP and SJP has been documented several times over the years by several organizations, including NGO Monitor and StandWithUs.
In addition to providing financial, public relations and legal assistance to SJP, AMP has also been accused of having connections to Hamas. The AMP national board includes former members of both the Islamic Association of Palestine (IAP) and Holy Land Foundation (HLF), both of which were found liable for aiding and abetting Hamas. The IAP was founded by Mousa Mohammed Abu Marzook, a senior member of Hamas.
Social Media and Weblinks
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/1054530693Twitter: https://twitter.com/emmaberdugo [Private]
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emmanuelle-berdugo-1078a387/
