by The state of MassachusettsDuring a Quaker event in Cambridge this week, Rep. Katherine Clark, one of the leading Democrats in Congress, seemed to call Israel’s conduct in Gaza a genocide.
House minority whip Clark, however, told Boston.com that the description was taken out of context.
Clark would have been among the top congressional representatives to label Israel’s conduct genocidal if her first statement, delivered at a Cambridge event, had called for halting the hunger, slaughter, and destruction of Gaza.
Following the headlines, Clark stated, “I want to be clear that I am not accusing Israel of genocide.”
Clark: Stopping the starvation and genocide and destruction of Gaza
Last Thursday, Clark, who represents the 5th district of Massachusetts, which includes parts of Cambridge, Medford, and Framingham, spoke at a Friends Committee on National Legislation event in Harvard Square. She seemed to be responding to a question when she mentioned Gaza.
According to a video of the conversation, Clark states that each of us must keep an open mind about how we accomplish this, how we do it successfully, and how we act quickly to change things. Whether that means halting the famine, genocide, and devastation of Gaza or if it means cooperating to halt the ongoing gerrymandering that denies people the right to vote in order to maintain power.
We have to do it all, even though it’s exhausting. She ends before someone speaks up to ask a follow-up question.
Last week’s gathering at the Friends Meeting House was attended by protesters from Congressional District 5, or CD5, for Palestine. The advocates praised Clark’s apology and shared the video with Boston.com.
Thank you. According to a statement released by activist Sam Levine, Katherine Clark has finally admitted that Israel is perpetrating genocide. Now, Representative Clark needs to take appropriate action. This entails a pledge to stop providing any military assistance to this homicidal regime.
Clark later says she repeated the word genocide in response to a question
The lawmaker, when approached, stated that she does not think Israel is carrying out a genocide in Gaza. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC, supports Clark, who traveled to Israel in 2015.
I used the word “genocide” in response to a question last week at an event in my area. Clark added in a statement, “I want to be clear that I am not accusing Israel of genocide.” We must all act quickly to free the remaining captives, stop the war, remove Hamas from power, increase aid to Palestinians and fight against their forced transfer.
According to federal campaign data, AIPAC gave around $400,000 to Clark’s campaign during the 2024 election cycle.
Molly Farrar works for Boston.com as a general assignment reporter, covering topics such as politics, crime, and education.
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