Owen Howard

On October 7, 2023, Howard expressed support for the Hamas terror attacks that took place that day. The incident is detailed below.

On October 7, 2023, Hamas murdered approximately 1,200 Israelis, kidnapped hundreds and wounded thousands. War crimes included mass rape and torture. Many Palestinian civilians participated in and supported the attacks, and Gazans working in the targeted Israeli communities gave intelligence to Hamas on where to strike.

For more information, see the Canary Mission page on Hamas.

On October 7, 2023, the Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) chapter at De Paul (SJP DePaul) posted on Instagram a flyer for an upcoming protest titled: "PALESTINE RESISTS OCCUPATION."

SJP DePaul wrote in the post: "...Chicago, join us at the israeli consulate tomorrow at 1pm as we will be holding a protest to voice our support for Palestinian resistance back home against years of occupation and apartheid!"

Anti-Israel activists use the term “resistance” to refer to violence and terror perpetrated against Israeli civilians and their allies. It is used to glorify and encourage anti-Israel and anti-Semitic violence. Anti-Israel activists chant slogans such as: “Resistance by any means necessary!” and “Resistance is justified when people are occupied!” in response to terror attacks.

On the same date, Howard commented on the same SJP DePaul post with heart emojis in the colors of the Palestinian flag: "❤️🖤🤍💚."

On October 18, 2023, J4J posted on Instagram a statement that said: "We unconditionally support the Palestinian right to resist."

On the same date, Howard commented on the J4J post with a red heart emoji, a Palestinian flag emoji and a synagogue emoji: "❤️🕍."

On October 8, 2024, Howard commented on Instagram: "Mourn the martrys, honor the resistance ❤️" in response to a post featuring photos from an anti-Israel rally on DuPaul's campus. The photos included[slide 2] an image of a protestor holding a sign that said: "BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY," and a drawing of terrorist Leila Khalied holding a rifle.

Anti-Israel activists use the phrase “By any means necessary” as one of multiple euphemisms for terrorist violence, of which another is “resistance.”

Leila Khaled is a leading member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and participated in the hijacking of TWA Flight 840 in 1969 and El Al Flight 219 in 1970. As of 2017, Khaled was a member of PFLP's Political Bureau. Khaled has said that the second intifada failed because it was not violent enough, advocated [00:36:07] for the use of children in terror activities and compared Zionists to Nazis.

On May 17, 2024, J4J was listed as a collaborator on an Instagram post by FTP-Chicago featuring a poster that said [slide 9]: "F**k Israel / Israel’s A BITCH! / Bitch we out Here Mobbin on Some Palestine S**t!"

On May 18, 2024, J4J was again listed as a collaborator on an Instagram post by FTP-Chicago featuring photos from the anti-Israel encampment at DePaul.

The post included [slide 1] a photo of a Palestinian flag with text that read: "from the River to the Sea / free free free PALESTINE."

“From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be Free” is a chant used [00:02:47] to call for the elimination of the State of Israel. It has also been employed by Hamas leader Khaled Mashal to call for the replacement of Israel with an Islamic state. In April 2024, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution condemning the chant as antisemitic.

The same post also included [slide 3] a photo of a flyer featuring an American and Israeli flag joined together in flames over two figures holding rifles with text that read: "SOLIDARITY MEANS REVOLUTION."

On January 19, 2025, while Howard was the president of J4J, the group was listed as a collaborator on an Instagram post that said [slide 1]: "AFTER CEASEFIRE, THE FIGHT AGAINST ZIONISM MUST PERSIST."

The post also said [slide 6]: "ZIONISM MUST FALL" and [slide 8]: "IT IS OUR DUTY TO ERASE ZIONISM FROM EVERY CREVICE OF JEWISH LIFE."

The Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement was founded by pro-terror activist Omar Barghouti in 2005 to turn “Israel into a pariah state, as South Africa once was.” Barghouti has also called for Israel's destruction and the BDS movement demands would result in that same goal.

BDS initiatives include calling on institutions and individuals to divest from Israeli-affiliated companies, promoting academic and cultural boycotts of Israel, and organizing anti-Israel rallies, protests and campaigns.

The movement’s most notable achievement has been infiltrating university campuses through lobbying for “BDS resolutions.” In these cases, student governments propose resolutions to boycott or divestment from Israel or Israeli-affiliated entities. BDS activity is often aggressive and disruptive. It has been noted that universities that pass BDS resolutions see a marked increase in anti-Semitic incidents and pro-terror activism on campus.

Expressing Support for Terrorists

Hatred of America, Israel & Zionism

The Pro-Terror & Anti-Israel Movement After 10/7/2023

The BDS Movement

Social Media and Weblinks