The Democratic Socialists of America is facing a crisis over how it has responded to the conflict between Israel and Hamas due to its pro-Palestinian positions.
Isabel Leon/Boston Mayor’s Office
In Massachusetts, DSA chapters in Boston and Worcester have called for an end to U.S. military aid for Israel.
But even the most left-leaning members of the state’s all-Democratic congressional delegation, Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Ayanna Pressley, have refused to go that far. Both have called for “de-escalation” on both sides of the conflict, and Pressley called for an “immediate ceasefire.”
Markey was booed at a “stand with Israel” rally in Boston on Monday for saying exactly that — showing the competing pressures on Democrats in the deep-blue state.
He was also swiftly rebuked by a fellow delegation member, Rep. Jake Auchincloss, a Jewish military veteran who offered full-throated support for Israel and said “de-escalation is not possible when [Hamas is] taking hostages.”
Sara Forman, executive director of the New York Solidarity Network, which promotes the American alliance with Israel, said candidates should reject a DSA endorsement going forward.
“Are you going to be a candidate, in New York, especially, who understands that New York Jews increasingly see the DSA as explicitly an antisemite organization?” she asked in an interview.
Republicans have sought to link DSA members to mainstream Democrats.
In New York, GOP state senators urged Democratic leadership to strip its handful of DSA members of their committee and leadership posts — a move that will put pressure on moderate Democrats to address.
At City Hall in New York City, Republicans and Democrats who run on the GOP line told their DSA-aligned counterparts in statement: “There is no equivalency. There is no ‘both sides’ argument. There is no moral relativism. This is pure evil.”
New York state Sen. Julia Salazar (D-Brooklyn) condemned the Times Square rally in support of Palestinians that turned ugly, but also said her support of the Democratic Socialists is rooted in her objections to Israel’s occupations.
