By Christopher Overfelt

The new Israeli government has been established, and it is one defined by openly racist rhetoric, policies of ethnic cleansing, and unapologetic apartheid. Joe Biden has so far welcomed this new government. Money and weapons continue to flow to Israel in order to slaughter more Palestinians.

The current American foreign policy can be a difficult one to interpret. On one hand, Americans are told we must sacrifice in order to save Ukraine from Russian despotism. Times are hard for ordinary Americans, yes, but the fight for Ukraine is one worth fighting. And so billions of our taxpayer dollars flow out the door.

And then on the other hand, our same taxpayer dollars are funding despotism around the world. Our money imprisons political activists in Egypt. Our weapons slaughter children in Yemen. Our embassies save corrupt governments in Central America. So which is it? Are we fighting despotism or funding it?

This is why it is so difficult for me to swallow the benevolent narratives that surround the American effort in Ukraine. When policies of fighting despotism in Ukraine are paired side by side with funding openly apartheid governments like the one in Israel, trust in our leaders is eroded, and their integrity questioned.

—Christopher Overfelt, a member of Veterans for Peace, serves on the PeaceWorks KC Board.