Neil Yetwin’s June 1 letter, (“What did protesters really accomplish?”) asserted the university campus protests concerning the Israeli war accomplished nothing.
What has the Israeli-U.S. genocide in Gaza accomplished? Tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed, including 15,000 children and 10,000 women, more than 80,000 injured, and thousands buried in the rubble. Nearly all Gaza residents are terrorized, traumatized, homeless, exhausted and malnourished.
The entire world is watching Israel starve and bomb children to death. Israeli leaders have never looked worse, and they say the Gaza war may continue until next winter.
Israeli belligerence and violence in what remains of the Palestinian West Bank has risen sharply since 2023 as have Palestinian fatalities.
Almost 1,800 Israelis were killed and at least 3,500 wounded.
Billions now know what a Palestinian flag looks like. New, powerful, anti-war movements exist in the United States and other nations. Millions of Americans have been educated via the campus protests and many ceasefire resolutions enacted by local governments, labor unions, and civil society groups. Widening divisions exist among U.S. Jews. Anti-Zionist Jewish groups are much stronger. The war has stimulated antisemitism, decreasing Jewish safety.
Israel is more isolated internationally. The International Criminal Court may soon indict Israeli and Hamas leaders. Israel, with U.S. support, defies an International Court of Justice order.
United Nations agencies and structures are seen as ineffective. The 19-year-old Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions campaign targeting Israel is stronger. Many now believe the international community will have to rein in Israel.
Tom Ellis