Judaic community groups protest Amazon Web Service ’s ( AWS ) cloud computing contracts with and other technical accompaniment for Immigration and Customs Enforcement say that dozens of their member were arrested at an Amazon Books store in Manhattan on Sunday .
Sophie Ellman - Golan , military volunteer organizer with Jews for Racial and Economic Justice ( JFREJ ) and one of the leaders of Never Again Action , told Gizmodo the # JewsAgainstICE protest drew around 1,000 participant and result in rough 40 arrests of sales demonstrator , admit rabbis and other prominent members of New York ’s Judaic community , such asCity Councilman Brad Lander . The activists rallied on Sunday outside the Amazon retail locating on East 34th St. to draw attending to AWS swarm contracts with ICE and Palantir Technologies , which provide the agency with data for use inimmigration raids and other enforcement action . Donald Trump and his administration has describe immigrant and refugee inbroadly antiblack and bigoted terms , and has aim frosting tocarry out mass raidstargeted at undocumented immigrants in their homes , workplaces , and community .
Amazon ’s ties to law enforcement have proved controversial even internally , where employees last class sent a letter to CEO Jeff Bezosasking him to stopselling the company ’s Rekognition facial recognition to law enforcement and boot Palantir from AWS . ( While Amazon enunciate last year it does not have any contract to provide Rekognition to ICE , it reportedlydid pitch the agencyon such a good deal , and AWS hostsmuch of the representation ’s digital base . )
A photo released by Jews for Racial & Economic Justice of organizer Yehudah Webster being taken into custody at a protest against Amazon in Manhattan on Aug. 11, 2019.Photo: Jews for Racial & Economic Justice (Twitter)
JFREJ tell Gizmodo in an emailed program line that the action necessitate protesters from legion organizations , includingJFREJ , Congregation Beit Simchat Torah – CBST , T’ruah , Romemu , Lab / Shul , Flatbush Judaic Center , SAJ - Judaism that Stands for All , Never Again Action , Avodah , andMalkhut , as well as rabbis and other members of the Jewish residential area who demand Amazon “ cut ties with water ice and [ Donald ] Trump ’s exile machine . ”
The particular date chosen is Tisha B’Av , a Jewish holiday that is both a loyal mean solar day and an function for mourning disasters that have hit Jewish people throughout chronicle , embark on with the destruction of both Solomon ’s Temple and the late 2nd Temple in Jerusalem . In the statement , personal organizer save that “ this daylight is a call to action to keep a modern - day catastrophe against another targeted minority group . ”
Kaddish at Amazon#JewsAgainstICEpic.twitter.com / aTyrIczwD7
— Eli Valley ( @elivalley)August 11 , 2019
“ We mourn the destruction of all thing holy on the Jewish ceremonial occasion of Tisha b’Av , ” Sharon Kleinbaum , D.C. , senior rabbi with CBST , save in the financial statement . “ This current presidential term ’s attacks on immigrant , Muslims , Jews , people of color , and so many others are likewise fearsome destruction of holiness . CBST is proud to stand with all those suffer today and against the iniquity of the camps , ICE policies and the breakup of house . Never Again is Now . ”
“ Tisha B’Av is a meter for mourn destruction and ravaging . woefully , unconscionably , this year , end and ravaging are all around us , ” Rabbi Shai Held also wrote in the statement . “ We have a fantastic amount to mourn — the stern assault on the most basic values of empathy and decency ; the cruelty daily enacted in our name ; the metastasization of racism and antisemitism in our area . We mourn , but we are also here today to say that beyond bereavement , we will press . ”
1000 + NYC#JewsAgainstICEcame together this#TishaBAvto demand@amazonstop enabling the detention and deportation machine that ’s terrorizing immigrant communities .
We know too well what happens when tech ship’s company facilitate govts labialize hoi polloi up and put them in camps . Never again.pic.twitter.com/bdytpS6JUg
— Sophie Ellman - Golan ( @EgSophie)August 11 , 2019
We are praying with our feet , model in at@amazonin midtown record Eicha and Word from detain immigrant families and call on Amazon to stop enable ICE ’s cruelty w/@JFREJNYC@MaketheRoadNY@bradlander & century more#JewsAgainstICEpic.twitter.com / LSHFSzNfcd
— Naomi Dann ( @naomi_dann)August 11 , 2019
Photos post to Twitter by the organizations involved and others evince militant march down the street before take the stock , praying , and singing songs including Kol Ha’Olam Kulo , a Hebrew birdsong that urges against gift into reverence . At some point , NYPD officer entered the emplacement and took protesters who refused to will the premise into hold , the photos showed :
https://twitter.com/embed/status/1160661224666931200
Gesher Tsar Me’od : A Very Narrow Bridge#JewsAgainstIcepic.twitter.com / nTJijNUs0h
https://twitter.com/embed/status/1160668508910444546
JFREJ write on Twitter that the NYPD appeared to have requisitioned a city bus to delight the prominent bit of arrest individuals .
NYPD took an MTA coach out of service of process to transport the over 40#JewsAgainstICEwho have been arrested demanding@amazoncut tie with ICE.#NeverAgainIsNow#CloseTheCamps#NoTech4ICEpic.twitter.com / O6BmrCRDUR
— Jews for Racial & Economic Justice ( @JFREJNYC)August 11 , 2019
https://twitter.com/embed/status/1160719483130044416
Neither Amazon or the NYPD responded to a request for comment from Gizmodo as of Sunday even , and we ’ll update this taradiddle if we see back .
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