Washington, D.C. | November 4, 2009 | Yesterday, the US House of Representatives voted 344-36 in support of the remarkably biased H. Res. 867 which called on the President and the Secretary of State to unequivocally oppose any endorsement of the Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict.  During the debate on the House floor, it became increasingly clear that the Members of Congress who voted for H. Res. 867 had not read the report, and instead were relying on inaccuracies and deeply flawed arguments made around the Report. By passing this resolution, Congress sent a message yesterday that it does not stand for the accountability of war crimes committed in Gaza, the protection of civilians, and/or the restoration for peace.

 Though the vote was very one-sided, 36 Members of Congress – 33 Democrats and 3 Republicans- courageously voted to oppose H. Res. 867, and correctly pointed out that the opportunity of holding a hearing on the Report did not even exist, and that such resolution does nothing to promote peace and accountability.  The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) urges you to recognize and thank these 36 US House Representatives for exhibiting real leadership by contacting them TODAY. Please see below for the list.

Arizona: AZ-4: Edward Pastor (D), AZ-7: Raul Grijalva (D)

Arkansas: AR-2: Victor Snyder (D)

California: CA-6: Lynn Woolsey (D), CA-7: George Miller (D), CA-9: Lee Barbara (D), CA-13: Fortney Stark (D), CA-23: Lois Capps (D), CA-35: Maxine Waters (D), CA-51 Bob Filner (D)

Indiana: IN-7: Andre Carson (D)

Kentucky: KY-4: Davis Geoff (R)

Louisiana: LA-7: Charles Boustany (R)

Maryland: MD-4: Donna Edwards (D)

Massachusetts: MA-1: John Olver (D), MA-3: James McGovern (D), MA-9: Lynch Stephen (D)

Michigan: MI-13: Carolyn Kilpatrick (D), MI-15: John Dingell (D)

Minnesota: MN-4: Betty McCollum (D), MN-5: Keith Ellison (D)

Missouri: MO-1: William Clay (D)

New York: NY-11: Yvette Clarke (D), NY-22: Maurice Hinchey (D)

North Carolina: NC-4: David Price (D), NC-12 Melvin Watt (D)

Ohio: OH-10: Dennis Kucinich (D)

Oregon: OR-3 Earl Blumenauer (D)

Texas: TX-14: Ronald Paul (R), TX-25 Lloyd Doggett (D), TX-30 Eddie Johnson (D)

Virginia: VA-8: James Moran

Washington: WA-3: Brian Baird (D), WA-7: James McDermott (D)

West Virginia: WV-3: Nick Rahall (D)

Wisconsin: WI-2: Tammy Baldwin (D)

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NOTE TO EDITORS: The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), which is non sectarian and non partisan, is the largest Arab-American civil rights organization in the United States. It was founded in 1980, by former Senator James Abourezk to protect the civil rights of people of Arab descent in the United States and to promote the cultural heritage of the Arabs. ADC has 38 chapters nationwide, including chapters in every major city in the country, and members in all 50 states.

The ADC Research Institute (ADC-RI), which was founded in 1981, is a Section 501(c)(3) educational organization that sponsors a wide range of programs on behalf of Arab Americans and of importance to all Americans. ADC-RI programs include research studies, seminars, conferences and publications that document and analyze the discrimination faced by Arab Americans in the workplace, schools, media, and governmental agencies and institutions. ADC-RI also celebrates the rich cultural heritage of the Arabs.