Peace Activists Disrupt “Defense” Secretary Austin
and Others 25 Times During Senate Hearing
CODEPINK

WASHINGTON (April 9, 2024) – CODEPINK activists disrupted Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin during a U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee hearing this morning. The message was clear: Stop the complicity with Israel’s genocide in Gaza!

The Senate committee held the hearing to receive testimony from Austin, United States Air Force General Charles Q. Brown, Jr., and Under Secretary of Defense Michael J. McCord regarding the “defense” budget for 2025 and future years. Excluded from the testimony was the voice of war-tired Americans who wanted to cut the Pentagon and redirect funds to the needs of the people and save the planet. That starts with ceasing all weapons and military packages to Israel and ending the genocide in Gaza.

The activists felt compelled to disrupt Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin as he lied under oath, claiming the U.S. has not seen any evidence of Israel committing genocide in Gaza.

“You speak to Yoav Gallant on a daily basis. Two days ago he said the invasion of Rafah will be akin to Al Shifa Hospital. The blood is on your hands!” shouted Julia Norman, a grad school student who has devoted all her spare time to advocating for Palestinians on Capitol Hill.

Who supports Antony Blinken’s ouster? Let’s have a show of hands.

CODEPINK and other peace activists disrupted the meeting 25 times while Senator Wicker called in Capitol police to remove each activist.

According to a YouGov poll, 52% want American arms shipments to stop until Israel ends its attacks in Gaza. That majority grows each day as the U.S. continues to funnel weapons to Israel. Recently a group of legislators has grown somewhat of a conscience and called for a halt to weapons and military packages to Israel but this number is far from the majority.

For more information about the disruption or CODEPINK’S daily advocacy in Congress, please contact Melissa at melissa@codepink.org.