Aqua Foundation Faces Backlash Social Media Post

Photo via Mateo A. Ventura Bruer, LinkedIn.

10. After Israel retaliated against Hamas in Gaza in October, many took to social media to show their support for those affected, including Mateo Ventura Bruer, the executive director of the Aqua Foundation for Women.

On his personal Instagram account, he posted a message of support for Palestine. He called for a ceasefire and included the hashtag #FromTheRiverTotheSea. Afterward, Aqua posted an apology “for the offense caused by a hashtag used by our Executive Director’s recent personal post about the Palestine-Israel conflict.”

That, however, led to a flurry of negative comments on social media, including drag artist and Aqua scholar Bad Papi pulling out as an entertainer at the foundation’s Aqua Affair. Shortly after, the foundation announced that the event was postponed; a new date has yet to be released.
The Anti-Defamation League explains that “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” is an anti-semetic slogan. The advocacy group notes that the phrase has been used by Hamas and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and is “fundamentally a call for a Palestinian state extending from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, territory that includes the State of Israel, which would mean the dismantling of the Jewish state.” In a later post, Bruer posted a clarification for his use of the hashtag.

— Christiana Lilly