The US Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR), formerly known as the US Campaign to End Israeli Occupation, is a pro-Palestinian advocacy group advocating for the rights of Palestinians. The organization was founded in 2001 after the

second Intifada The Second Intifada ( ar, الانتفاضة الثانية, ; he, האינתיפאדה השנייה, ), also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada ( ar, انتفاضة الأقصى, label=none, '), was a major Palestinian uprising against Israel. ...

and is now made up of more than 300 member groups in the US working for Palestinian advocacy. USCPR was created with the goal to focus on "denied human rights" instead of focusing explicitly on Palestinian statehood.

Activities

USCPR advocates for multiple campaigns, including BDS, providing a "BDS toolkit" and "Divestment toolkit" on its website. It also advocated for

prison abolition The prison abolition movement is a network of groups and activists that seek to reduce or eliminate prisons and the prison system, and replace them with systems of rehabilitation that do not place a focus on punishment and government institutiona ...

during COVID-19 and called for a ban of US funding of imprisoning of Palestinian children in the

occupied territories Military occupation, also known as belligerent occupation or simply occupation, is the effective military control by a ruling power over a territory that is outside of that power's sovereign territory.Eyāl Benveniśtî. The international law ...

. USCPR has also helped organize pro-Palestinian protests, including a march in DC, in light of the 2023 war in Gaza. USCPR is seen as among the largest groups supporting the Gaza War protest movement. USCPR has also encouraged student activism for

ceasefire A ceasefire (also known as a truce or armistice), also spelled cease fire (the antonym of 'open fire'), is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions. Ceasefires may be between state act ...

, and has supported such student groups. In September 2018, USCPR invited Representative Betty McCollum to an event to thank her for sponsoring a bill, Promoting Human Rights by Ending Israeli Military Detention of Palestinian Children Act. At this event, McCollum became the first representative in the United States to characterize Israel as an apartheid state.

Membership

Notably, USCPR includes both Palestinian-Americans, Jewish-Americans, and other allies working in solidarity with campus groups to create programs highlighting what they consider as Israeli apartheid. For example, USCPR held an event with Jewish Voices for Peace and Georgetown SJP discussing Israeli birthright trips and their context within what they consider Israeli settler-colonialism.

Reception

USCPR is considered one of the foremost pro-Palestinian organizations in the United States. As of 2020, USCPR is one of the organizations blacklisted by Israel, such that its activists are deported from that country. In 2019, USCPR was sued by Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael-Jewish National Fund and 12 American-Israeli citizens for allegedly providing material support through BDS for terrorist activities during the 2018

Great March of Return Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements * Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size * Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent People * List of people known as "the Great" *Artel Great (born ...

. Critics argued the lawsuit was frivolous and designed to combat BDS through "

lawfare Lawfare is the use of legal systems and institutions to damage or delegitimize an opponent, or to deter individual's usage of their legal rights.''Unrestricted Warfare''p. 55 The term may refer to the use of legal systems and principles against ...

". The suit was later dismissed, as judges ruled that plaintiffs had failed to provide any sufficient link to terrorism. In 2023, in light of the October 7 attacks by Hamas, USCPR annual conference was canceled by Hilton hotels due to alleged safety and security concerns. USCPR said that the cancellation was discriminatory. The event had generated conservative media attention, which called for a pressure campaign to ask Hilton to cancel the event.

Activities

Membership

Reception

References

Further reading