The Township of Bloomington had a special meeting today to determine whether voters will be able to decide on a non-binding resolution calling on the United States to end military aid to apartheid Israel this November.
Using an obscure law from the mid-19th century, fifteen township residents can propose an advisory ballot question to be voted on at the annual Township Meeting. Any township resident physically present at the meeting can vote to place an advisory question on public policy on the November ballot. A simple majority is needed to add the question. It is direct democracy at its purest, rawest, and most uncut.
The ballot question reads:
“Shall the United States Federal Government & subordinate divisions stop giving military funding to Israel which currently costs taxpayers 3.8 billion dollars a year, given Israel’s global recognition as an apartheid regime with a track record of human rights violations.”
Bloomington Zionists won a resounding victory. The ballot question failed 28-88. It will not appear on the November ballot.
This comes as the U.S.-backed Israeli War on Gaza against Hamas enters its seventh month since the deadly terrorist attacks on October 7th, 2023. It was the largest death count of Israelis in the country’s history, and the ensuing war is the largest death count of Palestinians in the history of the Israel-Palestine conflict.
This was part of a larger initiative throughout Central Illinois encouraging divestment & boycotts of the state of Israel as long as it remains an apartheid state. On April 9th, 2024, three townships in Central Illinois held similar ballot questions: Peoria Township, Capital Township (City of Springfield Township), and Cunningham Township (City of Urbana Township).
The Peoria & Capital votes failed. In Peoria, the vote was 67-93. In Springfield, the vote was 17-56. Only the Township of Cunningham voted in favor of placing the question on the November ballot. The question passed 76-40. The City of Urbana had already passed a Ceasefire Resolution on March 19th, 2024.
Almost all international human rights organizations view Israel as an apartheid state against non-Jews. Even Israeli leaders dating back to 1967 have admitted Israel is an apartheid state, including current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Watch the video of the meeting below:
