Representative Dan Goldman,

This letter is written on behalf of your constituents to demand an immediate apology, correction, and retraction of statements you made on March 18th. The statements are as follows:

1.“There are too many children who have died, but I do not trust those numbers.”

2. “Israel is a democracy in an area surrounded by terrorists”

As constituents of New York's 10th Congressional District, one of the most diverse, progressive, and multiracial districts in the country, we are shocked and hurt at your extremist comments.

Questioning the death toll in Gaza is a far–right tactic designed by the Netanyahu government to dehumanize Palestinians and misrepresent the current genocide as a campaign of self-defense. You were present at the State of the Union where President Biden shared these same numbers, over 30,000 people killed, and further confirmed that the overwhelming majority of those killed are women and children, not combatants. You also told us you “do not trust those numbers” the same day Netanyahu himself spoke to Republican lawmakers and reported a similar death toll to US Senators. By peddling this false AIPAC talking point, you put yourself to the right of Netanyahu and on the wrong side of history. For you to deliberately repeat lies to provide cover for this genocide – six months in and over 30,000 dead – is appalling.

Stating that “Israel is a democracy in an area surrounded by terrorists” reveals that you see the people of Palestine, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Egypt as terrorists. This is racist and xenophobic. Over 30% of your constituents were not born in the U.S. Many of us have close ties and loved ones in these places you so dangerously slander. Rather than demonstrate true leadership for all of your constituents, you chose to dehumanize Palestinian people along with the people of every other country bordering Israel. You are no less an extremist than the MAGA movement you claim to oppose, for a cause with so much blood on its hands.

We refute your statement that Israel is a democracy: it is an apartheid state. This is well established among NGOs such as Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and Israel’s own B’Tselem. Palestinians have lived under this apartheid reality for decades, but you deny this. In September 2023, Tamir Pardo, who headed the Mossad under Benjamin Netanyahu from 2011 to 2016, said that Israel is imposing apartheid on the Palestinians. In August, the former Northern Commander of the Israeli army described the situation in the West Bank as one of “total apartheid.” This regime of apartheid, occupation, and oppression is made possible only through the funding and diplomatic sponsorship of the United States.

Again, we demand an immediate apology, correction and retraction of both of your dangerous and dishonest statements. We await your response.

Sincerely,

Your undersigned constituents,