Montgomery County: Drop the MIDC in this Hour of U.S.-Israel Genocide

UPDATE: April 17: Peace Action Montgomery now needs other constituents to amplify our message with emails. See the action alert here. There is a new short 3-minute video) that responds to comments by County Council and other elected officials who rationalize the MIDC funding for economic benefit. If you are not familiar with the campaign about the MIDC, here is the background video.

On April 7, 2025, six concerned citizens testifIed before the Montgomery County Council, asking the councilors to end funding to the Maryland Israel Development Center (MIDC). Here is a video compilation (5-min., 38-sec.) of their statements during a hearing about the county’s proposed FY 2026 budget.

The concerned citizens who spoke at the hearing are Hal Ginsberg, Gayatri Girirajan, Richard Gollub, John Holland, Susan Kerin, and Steven Sellers Lapham.

Visit DropTheMIDC.org to view two short background videos, written materials, and join us by sending an email to the Council.

Peace Action Montgomery reports on April 15, 2025:

Today is Tax Day – a good time to think about how our federal budget reflects our national values. Budgets aren’t just numbers; they show what we care about as a country.Right now, while the Trump Administration is laying off tens of thousands of civilian government workers, it's also proposing a massive increase in military spending – up to a record $1 trillion just announced yesterday. To understand how much money goes to the military and what else we could be doing with it, check out the National Priorities Project website. Montgomery County has been hit hard by the recent DOGE layoffs. But at the same time, we also have to recognize that our county has played a major part in the growth of the defense budget. Here are two examples:

· Lockheed Martin based in Bethesda gets almost as much from the Pentagon as the entire budget for the National Institute of Health. In fact, it gets double the operating budget for the entire District of Columbia.

· Israel's Artificial Demand Scheme - Most in the peace community are aware that Israel pushes heavily for US-funded weapons supported by lobbying from groups like AIPAC. But what's less known is that Israel also sells these weapons through entities like Rafael and Elta, which are disguised as private companies but are actually part of the Israeli government itself. This is like a seller on eBay bidding on their own item—it drives up the price and quantity, a type of fraud known as "artificial demand." Our county through funding we give to the Maryland Israel Development Center has been the welcome mat for these entities coming into the United States.

Our local and state leaders often say they can't speak out against these merchants of death because they create jobs. But we have to ask are these jobs worth the cost? These companies contribute to conflict around the world and take away funding that could go toward healthcare, education, and other human needs. –Peace Action Montgomery