Pittsburgh protester presses Rep. Khanna on Israel, Gaza and support for Platner

Julie Paris was surprised when the opportunity to have a conversation with Rep. Rohit Khanna arose.

Khanna, who represents California’s 17th Congressional District, was in Pittsburgh to meet with nurses at UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital during contract negotiations between UPMC and hospital staff. He attended the meeting with Rep. Chris Deluzio, who represents Pennsylvania’s 17th Congressional District, which includes parts of Allegheny County.

Paris is the Mid-Atlantic regional director of StandWithUs and helped to assemble a group of Pittsburghers to protest the pair’s arrival at the hospital.

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She said StandWithUs pushes back on elected officials who promote extremism or demonize Israel.

“That kind of language is causing real harm to the Jewish community around the world, leading to votes to cut aid to Israel,” she told the Chronicle. “These are inexcusable acts at a time when Israel remains under existential threats.”

Khanna recently visited the West Bank and claimed he was detained by a group of Israeli settlers. The Israel Defense Forces pushed back against those claims, saying that soldiers were dispatched after receiving word that foreign nationals had entered into what was believed to be a closed military zone while Israeli citizens blocked a nearby road.

Khanna has accused Israel of lying about the incident.

StandWithUs criticized his portrayal of his visit to the West Bank, calling it a “publicity stunt” and noting that body-camera footage and public statements from Israeli and U.S. officials contradict key elements of his account.

The trip came just days after Graham Platner suspended his campaign for the U.S. Senate in Maine. Khanna was a vocal supporter of Platner — who was accused of sexual assault by a former girlfriend — even after it was revealed that he had a Nazi tattoo. Platner has covered up the tattoo.

Both Khanna and Deluzio co-sponsored H.R. 3565, the “Block the Bombs Act,” which would impose unprecedented conditions on arms sales to Israel, including requiring specific authorizations from Congress for every transfer of many types of weapons and guarantees from Israel about their use.

“I wanted to do something,” Paris said.

She didn’t expect Khanna to come out, along with a camera crew and a reporter from the New York Times, to speak with the protestors.

“I did not hold back in questioning his recent ‘political stunt’ in Israel, his support for extremists, and his vote against US aid to Israel,” Paris wrote on Facebook. “Not surprisingly, he pushed back and continued to spread dangerous propaganda, including pushing the genocide libel. I explicitly pushed him to define ‘genocide’ and told him this word isn’t a replacement for ‘a war you don’t like.’ I told him that his language is fueling global antisemitism that has caused actual genocide against Jews for thousands of years. I told him that Jews are called ‘genocide lovers’ and ‘baby killers’ when they walk down the street because of people like him pushing this false narrative.”

She told the Chronicle that she also pressed Khanna on his support of Platner, whom, she said, is a known extremist.

When Paris questioned Khanna on his experiences in the West Bank, asking if Israel was aware of his arrival in the country and granted approval for his travel on the day he went, she said the representative told her, “They knew I was there when I got the airport,” and “other American politicians have gone there.”

“I definitely felt like he was sidestepping the conversation,” she said.

Asked about his recent vote to cut all U.S. aid to Israel, led by Rep. Thomas Massey, Khanna claimed that Israel has enough weapons.

“I spoke with him extensively about how language is causing significant harm to Jewish communities around the world,” Paris said.

Khanna pointed to the United Nation’s claims that Israel is committing genocide. Paris pushed back.

“I said that the U.N. has been taken over by very anti-Israel voices. I asked if he knew who sits on the U.N. Security Council or the U.N. Council for Women’s Rights,” she said.

Asked if she thinks Khanna internalized her message, Paris said the two will continue their dialogue.

“Only time will tell whether he listened,” she said. “His votes are what matters. We plan to have another conversation. I will continue to hold our elected officials accountable and make sure they understand the perspective of the broader Jewish community.” PJC

David Rullo can be reached at drullo@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org