Here on the North Coast, far from the rubble of Gaza, it’s easy to feel helpless. But silence is not neutrality, and communities like ours must raise our voices when basic human decency is on the line.

Since last fall, more than 30,000 Palestinians in Gaza — many of them women and children — have been killed by Israeli airstrikes and ground operations. Homes, schools and hospitals have been leveled. Infrastructure has been deliberately decimated. Aid is being blocked. This is not just collateral damage. It’s a systematic assault on an entire population.

International experts, including former United Nations officials and human rights scholars, are calling it what it is: Genocide.

It might seem distant from life here in Clatsop County. But as Oregonians — and as Americans — we are tied to this violence through the billions in military aid our federal government sends to Israel. And while people across Oregon have marched, held vigils and demanded a ceasefire, many of our congressional leaders remain either silent or complicit.

Astoria may be a small town, but our values are strong. We believe in fairness, accountability and standing up for the vulnerable. We rally for neighbors in need, support local justice efforts and pride ourselves on civic engagement. Those values do not stop at our borders. Now is the time to extend them across the globe.

CARRIE BEVERIDGE

Astoria