The Israeli women and girls raped and taken hostage by Hamas have never received the same international support as the #MeToo and #BringBackOurGirls campaigns, a double standard that one women’s organization seeks to rectify.
The right-of-center Independent Women’s Forum launched the #OurGirls campaign on Tuesday, calling out the White House, feminist groups and international organizations for their “continued silence when it comes to the Israeli women and girls.”
“Stop the selective outrage,” said the IWF in a video ad. “Those who truly care about women should stand up for all women all the time. These are our sisters, our daughters, our moms all being held captive, brutalized and tortured.”
The group urged supporters to sign onto the “Our Girls” website petition, which also cited the sterilization of Uyghur women in China; the deaths of women at the hands of Iran’s “morality police,” and the rapes of Ukrainian women by Russian soldiers.
“Join us. We won’t stop fighting sexual brutality against women and girls. You are more than a hashtag or trend. You are valued and you are not forgotten,” the video said.
The campaign took a dig at the Biden administration, which has walked a fine line between supporting Israel in its war on the terrorist group Hamas and avoiding alienating pro-Palestinian voters in swing states like Michigan.
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The IWF ad said that “we will continue to call on those who are silent” while showing a clip of Vice President Kamala Harris, an outspoken #MeToo advocate.
Ms. Harris hasn’t been entirely silent. She condemned the “horrific reports of sexual assault by Hamas” in Dec. 23 post on X, calling them “reprehensible,” but there’s no comparison between the White House’s reaction to the horrors of 2023 versus 2014.
The Obama administration took the lead in condemning the 2014 kidnapping of 276 Nigerian schoolgirls by the Boko Haram, an Islamist jihadist group.
First Lady Michelle Obama spurred the viral social-media campaign #BringBackOurGirls, a message taken up by celebrities, United Nations officials, Pope Francis, and feminist groups like the National Organization for Women.
The #MeToo movement took off in 2017 as celebrities shared their stories of sexual harassment at the hands of Hollywood bigwigs, a campaign that spilled into the 2018 confirmation hearing of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh after he was accused of sexual assault.
“Now, these same so-called women’s rights advocates are conveniently silent when it comes to sexual violence elsewhere,” said the IWF statement.
NOW President Christian Nunes condemned “rape as a weapon of war” in a Nov. 30 statement without mentioning Israel or Hamas, while the Women’s March, which saw its leadership resign in 2019 amid antisemitism allegations, doesn’t appear to have issued any public statements.
Where are the #BringBackOurGirls voices now⁉️
We categorically oppose sexual violence against ALL women—whether that’s in China, Israel, Iran, Ukraine, or anywhere. They are all #OurGirls. Join us & sign the petition: https://t.co/0VF7gXIqXJ pic.twitter.com/GBONU8tq8b
— Independent Women’s Forum (@IWF) May 7, 2024
Margo Lindauer, clinical professor at Northeastern University School of Law, said in December that the left-wing political leanings of feminist groups have contributed to their silence over the Hamas sexual assaults.
“I think organizations here in the U.S. have been disinclined to make a statement because many women’s rights organizations or feminist-led organizations are aligned with movements of the left and liberation,” Ms. Lindauer told the Northeastern Global News. “Many of those organizations oppose current Israeli policies towards Palestine.”
An estimated 1,200 Israeli civilians and others were killed in the Oct. 7 surprise attack by Hamas terrorists, which prompted Israel to declare war.
Another 250 were kidnapped, some of whom have been released. About 130 remain unaccounted for, and 34 are presumed dead, according to the BBC.