Roaa Hussien

Overview

Roaa Hussien has demonized Israel, promoted hatred of Zionists and supported anti-Israel agitators.

Hussien also promoted a 2021 Students For Justice in Palestine (SJP) at the University of Illinois (UIC) campaign to boycott all Israeli institutions and the Jewish Metropolitan Fund of Chicago (JUF).

Hussien was a 2019-2020 activist with SJP Chicago, whose Facebook page said is a “network forged by student activists organizing for Palestine on university campuses throughout Chicago.”

Hussien has promoted the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.
As of April 2021, Hussien’s LinkedIn page said she worked in “Census Outreach” with the Arab American Family Services (AAFS) in the “Greater Chicago Area” since August 2019.

Hussien’s LinkedIn also stated that she was a “Field Organizer” for Abdelnasser Rashid’s campaign “Abdelnasser For Cook” since September 2019, and was an intern for the campaign from January-November 2018. Rashid ran for Cook County Commissioner, 17th District, as the Democratic nominee, from March - November 2018.

Hussien’s LinkedIn noted she was a “Student Representative'' with AMVOTE-PAC (American Middle East Voters Alliance - Political Action Committee) since September 2018.

In August 2021, Hussien tweeted she was attending her “first day of law school,” and her Twitter bio noted she was a student at UIC Law, expected to graduate in 2024. Her LinkedIn said she graduated from UIC with a bachelor’s degree in Economics and Political Science in 2020.

Demonizing Israel

On September 23, 2020, Hussien tweeted: “isreal is a terrorist state and should be boycotted and defunded along w the police. shoutout to UIUC SJP for all of their hard work

.”

“Defund the police” was a call popularized by the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement during the George Floyd Protests, to divest funds from police departments and redirect them towards social services.

Hussien retweeted a March 28, 2020 tweet that said: “While killing children in Palestine” in response to a tweet that said: “Meanwhile, the president of Israel is reading tales to children on tv.”

When many in Israel were confined to their houses during the coronavirus pandemic, President of Israel Reuven Rivlin began to read fairy tales on television to children in quarantine.

On May 15, 2018, Hussien tweeted: “make duaa [pray] for all of the Palestinian protestors on the boarder today!! the casualties and deaths are already too high (as of 4pm, approximately 52 palestines have died by Israeli forces).”

In May 2018, terror group Hamas instigated violent riots on the Israeli-Gaza border. Thousands of rioters attempted to breach Israel’s border fence, declaring their intention to harm Jews across the border under the pretext of “peaceful resistance.”

On May 16, 2018, a Hamas senior official, Salah al-Bardawil, stated that 50 out of 62 protesters killed during the May 14 Gaza border protest were Hamas operatives. Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) also claimed that three of its members were killed at the same protest.

Promoting Hatred of Zionism

On January 8, 2021, Hussien responded to a tweet by the Ben and Jerry’s ice cream company, condemning the Capitol Hill Riot, tweeting: “yikesssss these zionist a**:: motherf**kers are about to be praised for

tweeting

On January 6, 2021, hundreds of protestors rioted and attacked the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. in an attempt to disrupt the formalization of President Joe Biden’s electoral victory over President Donald Trump.

On February 12, 2019, Hussien tweeted: “our own UN Ambassador doesn’t know the difference between anti semitism and zionism !!!!!” replying to then-United States Ambassador to the United Nations (UN) Nikki Haley’s tweet condemning an anti-Semitic tweet written by U.S. Congresswoman Ilhan Omar.

Omar’s tweet had suggested that the American Israel Political Action Committee (AIPAC) bribed the U.S. to defend Israel. Omar’s remarks were denounced by top Congressional leaders as anti-Semitic.

The implication that AIPAC buys political support for Israel has been described as playing into “anti-Semitic tropes” that led to “centuries of stereotypes about Jews using money to control the world.”

Haley tweeted: “To see this at the UN was a fight every day. This CANNOT be tolerated in our own Congress by anyone of either party. In a time of increased anti semitism, we all must be held to account. No excuses.

#NoSpaceForHate #NoToleranceForAntiSemitism #WhatIsHappeningWithPeople.”

Supporting Anti-Israel Agitators

As of April 2021, Hussien’s LinkedIn indicated that she was a “volunteer Coordinator” for Rush Darwish’s campaign “Rush4Congress” from April - November 2019.

Rush Darwish [Rashad Darwish] shared a 9/11 conspiracy theory on Facebook. He also honored terrorists, spread anti-Israel conspiracy theories and has whitewashed the Hamas terror group.

As of August 2019, Darwish was a Democratic Congressional candidate for the third district in Chicago, Illinois and lost in the Democratic primary on March 17, 2020.

On April 12, 2019, Hussien tweeted: “Rep. Ilhan Omar was speaking at a dinner when she said'CAIR was founded after 9/11 because they recognized that some people did something and that all of us were starting to lose access to our civil liberties' and this is how uneducated citizens interpret WOC [Women of Color] word choice.”

Hussien also added in the same thread: “lemme take a sec to promote Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). they do amazing work empowering american muslims along with a pro bono legal team to protect Muslim-American civil rights https://cair.com.”

CAIR reportedly has “significant ties” to the Muslim Brotherhood (MB), as well as Hamas. A number of former CAIR employees have been convicted on fraud and terrorism-related charges that resulted monetary fines, jail terms and, sometimes, deportation.

In May 2007, CAIR was listed as an “unindicted co-conspirator” in a U.S.-filed action against the HLF for providing funds to Hamas. CAIR was also listedas a terrorist entity by the United Arab Emirates, in 2014.

Promoting SJP UIC’s Boycott of Jewish and Israeli Institutions

Hussien retweeted SJP UIC’s March 16, 2021 tweet that stated: #CutTheTiesUICSPH
@uicpublichealth” along with a poster that stated: “Our demand is that the UIC School of Public Health stop working with Islamophobic organizations.”

SJP UIC 2021 - Boycotting Jewish and Israeli Institutions

Hussien retweeted SJP UIC’s March 16, 2021 tweet that stated: #CutTheTiesUICSPH

@uicpublichealth” along with a poster that stated: “Our demand is that the UIC School of Public Health stop working with Islamophobic organizations.”

On February 2, 2021, SJP UIC condemned on Instagram UIC’s School of Public Health (SPH) for hosting a talk by Professor Gabi Bin Nun of Israel’s Ben Gurion University, titled “A Description of the Health Care System in Israel.”

SJP UIC wrote: “This isn’t the first time we’ve protested UIC School of Public Health’s strong relations with colonial institutions,” adding: “Is social justice working with ethnic cleansers?”

SJP UIC then invited students to copy their email template protesting [slide 3] Professor Bin Nun’s talk and send it to UIC’s SPH.

On February 10, 2021, SJP UIC condemned UIC’s SPH for inviting Israeli speakers to campus, adding: “These speakers perpetuate the colonial ideology that Israel was founded on.”

On February 19, 2021, SJP UIC encouraged students on Instagram to sign an “Open Letter” condemning UIC’s SPH event featuring Professor Bin Nun.

The letter suggested the Jewish United Fund of Metropolitan Chicago (JUF) was “racist, Islamophobic, and anti-Arab, and anti-Palestinian” and condemned SPH for allowing the JUF to fund the SPH Israeli Visiting Scholars program. The letter went on to suggest Israel blocked Palestinian access to COVID-19 prevention and treatment.

The SJP UIC letter also made a series of demands of UIC, including “the termination of ties between SPH and Israeli academic institutions” and the “termination of speakers that are visiting UIC as representatives of Israeli Institutions.”

On March 3, 2021, SJP UIC posted to Instagram that its representatives attended Professor Bin Nun’s talk and “persistently asked questions regarding Palestine.”

On March 11, 2021, SJP UIC posted to Instagram: “SJP is calling all organizers and activists to join us starting 12 pm on March 16th in our social media storm demanding the UIC School of Public Health answer for why they work with Islamophobic, anti-Arab, transphobic and homophobic organizations.”

On March 16, 2021, SJP UIC launched their #CutTheTiesUICSPH social media campaign on Instagram and Twitter. SJP UIC’s “Twitter storm for SPH campaign” contained over 60 tweets to copy and tweet out, as well as downloadable graphics and testimonies of anti-Israel student activists who had attended Bin-Nun’s lecture.

The campaign called to cut ties with the JUF and to object to future JUF-sponsored meetings “like any other anti-religious group,” and suggested such meetings were affront to all of UIC’s Muslim students.

The JUF, also known as the Jewish Metropolitan Fund of Chicago and the Jewish Federation of Chicago, serves as the central philanthropic address of Chicago's Jewish community.

In one Instagram post, SJP UIC stated: “Our Demand is that the UIC School of Public Health stop working with Islamophobic organizations.”

That same day, another one of SJP UIC’s Instagram posts said: “Islamophobia is a product of Zionism, and UIC’s School of Public Health is complicit.”

One of SJP UIC’s suggested tweets stated: “Palestinians were called 'illegal aliens' and pushed the responsibility towards the Arab world as if Israel isn’t mandated under Geneva convention to vaccinate the occupied people of Palestine." #CutTheTiesUICSPH @uicpublichealth.”

The Palestinian Authority (PA) is responsible for providing health services to Palestinians under its jurisdiction, as per the Oslo Accords.

In December 2020, PA officials reportedly insisted that they were going to procure the vaccines without Israel’s assistance. Israel had already provided vaccines to non-Israeli Arab residents of East Jerusalem.

Palestinian liaison officials later reportedly contacted Israel’s Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) department to request the vaccine, which Israel agreed to provide.

Another suggested tweet stated: “‘It was so clear that SPH only cares to promote a very specific narrative about Israel, one that washes over the colonization, ethnic cleansing, and occupation of the Palestinian people.’ #CutTheTiesUICSPH @uicpublichealth.”

Also on March 16, 2021 , SJP UIC tweeted: “Instead of bringing Israelis to talk about how great their apartheid system is, why not bring Palestinians to talk about the injustices they face in health access and health equity? #CutTheTiesUICSPH @uicpublichealth.”

SJP UIC also tweeted: “There are over 5000 Muslim students on the UIC campus making up 15% of the student body populationHowever, UIC school of Public health still found it appropriate to allow an Islamophobic group such as JUF host an event here. #CutTheTiesUICSPH @uicpublichealth.”

Another SJP UIC tweet stated: “Despite 200+ signatures requesting the cancellation of this event, SPH administrators refused to cancel this event. WHY? Does SPH not care about their Muslim and Arab/MENA students? It’s evident they do not.
#CutTheTiesUICSPH @uicpublichealth”

Another tweet read: “UIC doesn’t allow any hate groups or anti-religious groups to speak at their campus so, why is it different now when it comes to an Israeli speaker?
#CutTheTiesUICSPH @uicpublichealth.”

Another tweet read: “Calling out apartheid and racism is not antisemitism. #CutTheTiesUICSPH @uicpublichealth.”

On April 7, 2021, SJP UIC posted to their Facebook page: “We have great news! This past Monday at the USG meeting a resolution was passed declaring USG stands in solidarity with SJP and their allies in our campaign demanding SPH cut ties with the Islamophobic and racist JUF and other Zionist entities! Solidarity

!”

Pushing BDS

On January 8, 2019, Hussien tweeted: “

Last Thursday, the Senate’s first bill of the new Congress – S.1 – was introduced by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), and it encourages states to PUNISH PEOPLE FOR BOYCOTTING FOR PALESTINIAN RIGHTS. THE SENATE IS PLANNING TO VOTE ON THIS TOMORROW.

”

U.S. Senate bill S.1 - Strengthening America's Security in the Middle East Act of 2019 “allows states to divest from entities boycotting Israel.”

On February 4, 2020, Hussien tweeted: “never thought i’d have to cancel Chester Cheetah for being anti BDS.” Hussien also attached an advertisement for Sabra Hummus that featured [00:00:22] the cheetah, the official mascot for Frito-Lay's Cheetos brand snacks.

Sabra is partially owned by an Israeli company, the Strauss group.

On April 20, 2020, Hussien tweeted: “#BDS” and attached a poster calling to boycott Israeli dates in Ramadan.

Hussien also retweeted an SJP Chicago July 4, 2020 tweet that said: “Before you do your weekend shopping, boycott these brands that support Israel’s occupation of #Palestine!”

SJP Chicago Activism

On June 30, 2020, Hussien tweeted promoting a Day of Rage Rally and Car Caravan event titled “Chicago Coalition for Justice in Palestine Says No to Annexation.” The event was co-hosted by SJP Chicago, as part of a multistate effort that principally objected to Zionism and the existence of Israel as a state.

In the spring of 2020, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israeli sovereignty would be applied to certain areas of the West Bank. The annexation plan was canceled a day before the July 1, 2020 deadline.

Hussien retweeted an SJP Chicago August 31, 2019 tweet that said: “

SJP Chicago is back and better than ever! We are a unified front advancing the liberation of Palestine committed to supporting, uplifting, and connecting Students for Justice in Palestine chapters in the Chicagoland area.

SJP

SJP is a student organization engaged in anti-Israel activity on North American college and university campuses.

The first chapter of SJP was founded in 2001 at the University of California at Berkeley by Professor Hatem Bazian. Bazian has spread classic anti-Semitism, reportedly promoted religious anti-Semitism and defended the Hamas terror group. In 2004, Bazian called for “intifada” in America.

SJP organizes anti-Israel campaigns, including running annual Israel Apartheid Weeks, often in collaboration with Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) and Muslim Students Association (MSA) campus chapters.

SJP has been a major force in pushing the anti-Semitic Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement on campuses. Chapters have initiated dozens of BDS resolutions in student governments, which have been proposed on or around Jewish holidays, a time when many Jewish students are off-campus.

SJP activists have reportedly physically assaulted, intimidated and harassed Jewish students, disrupted pro-Israel campus events and demonized pro-Israel campus organizations.

Chapters have often endorsed and campaigned for numerous terrorists and whitewashed terrorism.

BDS

The Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement was founded by Omar Barghouti in 2005 to challenge “international support for Israeli apartheid and settler-colonialism.” BDS is an allegedly “Palestinian-led movement,” although leading BDS activists have admitted [00:01:01] this is not true.

One of the demands of BDS includes [point 3] what is generally known as the “right of return,” a demand discredited as a way to eliminate Israel. Barghouti said the “right of return” is a means to “end Israel’s existence as a Jewish state.”

Barghouti has said that BDS “aims to turn Israel into a pariah state, as South Africa once was.”

In his activism, Barghouti has also said [00:05:55] regarding Israel: “Definitely, most definitely, we oppose a Jewish state in any part of Palestine. No…rational Palestinian, not a sellout Palestinian, will ever accept a Jewish state in Palestine.”

The movement has been linked to numerous terrorist organizations and received a public endorsement from Hamas in 2017.

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 the infiltration of university campuses through lobbying for “BDS resolutions.” In these cases, student governments and student groups, backed by their own anti-Israel members and affiliates, have proposed resolutions on some form of boycott of, or divestment from, Israel and Israeli-affiliated entities.

Boycott resolutions, although non-binding, have been passed by student governments on numerous North American campuses.

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 on campus. On one campus, when the student government debated a BDS resolution, reports emerged of violent threats against those opposing it.