Michael Ratner was a trailblazing human rights attorney and a founding Advisory Board member of Palestine Legal. In this Real News video, Ratner describes going from a typical Jewish upbringing supportive of Israel to realizing that Israel’s actions are inconsistent with Jewish values. His Jewish commitment to justice makes the mistreatment of Palestinians and the United States’ support of that mistreatment feel untenable. Since his passing in 2016, Palestine legal, Democracy Now!, the Center for Constitutional Rights, and the New York Times have honored his life and pioneering legal work. Palestine Legal wrote about his legacy here.
Ratner was president of the Center for Constitutional Rights. He describes how he moved to a belief that all people in Israel/Palestine should be treated as equals. You can read a full report here from Palestine Legal and the Center for Constitutional Rights. Ratner also wrote about the importance of boycotts here.
Ratner spoke of his first-hand experience seeing apartheid in the West Bank on Real News, as well.
Watch this video by Palestine Legal honoring Michael Ratner’s legacy as an anti-imperialist lawyer committed to human rights.
