by CLC Staff

Twelve members of the North Carolina House got up and walked off the floor yesterday during its regular afternoon session. Their silent protest was in defiance of a bipartisan vote supporting Israel in the face of unprovoked barbarism in recent days from the terrorist group Hamas.

The twelve members refusing to condemn the carnage are state Representatives John Autry, Amber Baker, Gloristine Brown, Kanika Brown, Maria Cervania, Terence Everitt, Pricey Harrison, Nasif Majeed, Marcia Morey, Reneé Price, Diamond Staton-Williams, and Julie von Haefen.

The slaughter, which included some Americans, has claimed more than a thousand civilians since it began on October 7, and unconscionably, the attacks include butchering elderly Holocaust survivors, burning children alive, raping young women, and even beheading babies. It was the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust.

Speaker Tim Moore, the primary sponsor of the resolution, introduced the bill by saying it was an opportunity to “end the day in a very united way, to take a stand and to make a statement, not as Republicans, not as Democrats, but as Americans.”

Although no video is available of the dozen legislators walking out, Speaker Moore seemed visibly shaken as it became apparent to him that his hope for a united vote would not happen.

“For most of us, this was a simple choice: denounce evil or walk away,” said Speaker Moore in a statement this afternoon. “Unfortunately, 12 of our members chose to take a walk.”

“It is unconscionable to me that Democrats have become so extreme that they walked out and refused to vote on a resolution condemning the slaughtering of children and raping of women,” said Representative Erin Paré, a primary co-sponsor of the resolution. “Their shameful actions have sent a terrible message to not only the people of Israel, but all of America’s allies across the world.”

The flag flying over the North Carolina Legislative Building was lowered to half-staff today in honor of the Israeli citizens slaughtered in these heinous attacks.

This is not the first time left-wing members of the state House have shown their lack of support for the State of Israel. Earlier this year, the House overwhelmingly passed H.R. 894, “recognizing the Seventy-fifth Anniversary of the founding of the state of Israel, reaffirming bonds of friendship and cooperation between the State of North Carolina and Israel, and urging Congress to continue to support the relationships between North Carolina, the United States, and Israel.”

Representative Harrison voted against that resolution. Like yesterday, Reps. Everitt and Morey chose not to cast a vote in protest then as well.