Use the letter-writing toolkit to find printable postcards and sample letters.

Share about your action here so we can keep track of how many people are writing elected officials!

Your testimonial can help people understand the Indiana Fast for Gaza and encourage them to join us in taking action.

This can be as simple as:

1. “I’m fasting for 24 hours today in solidarity with the people of Gaza because…”

2. [Share your own reasons for fasting and why this issue is important to you]

3. “I’m asking my friends, family, and all people of conscience to take action to stop starving Gaza. Go to IndianaFastForGaza.com to find out more and get involved.

Or for a more in-depth testimonial, you might follow this outline (adapted from JVP-Detroit):

1. Who are you? (name is optional)

2. What is a value you hold that the Israeli military and government, aided by the US government, are violating?

3. How are they violating this value and how are you responding?

4. What would resolve this violation of your values?

5. What can people do to be part of this solution?

Example:

I am an American Jew living in Indianapolis on Kaskaskia, Myaamia, and Kiikaapoi land. I hold sacred the Jewish value of pikuach nefesh—saving a life.

Right now, over two million lives are at risk in Gaza as the Israeli military blocks aid from entering, shoots starving families trying to get food, and bombs civilians across Gaza.

Our elected officials could stop this. Instead, Indiana State Treasurer Daniel Elliott has invested $100 million of our tax dollars in Israel bonds—loans to the Israeli government. Members of Congress including Senator Todd Young have failed to take action to allow aid into Gaza.

That is why I am joining the Indiana Fast for Gaza. I am fasting for 24 hours in solidarity with the people of Gaza, raising funds for the Middle East Children’s Alliance, and calling on our elected officials to divest from genocide and stop starving Gaza.

Will you join me? Take action today at indianafastforgaza.com. 

See below for instructions on making and sharing a video of your testimonial. If you prefer to share a written version with JVP Indiana to share on our social media, please type it in a Google Doc and upload here (uploaded files will be deleted by 12/29/25).

• Shoot your video with your phone, holding it vertically 🤳

• Keep your video under 35 seconds

• Write out a script (e.g. your testimonial) and practice it. You might start by explaining what you are fasting from and how it relates to what people in Gaza are experiencing.

• Shoot your video in a quiet, well-lit room or outdoor space where there is light in front of your face

• Use headphones/earphones if possible to improve sound quality

Share your video to your personal social media and tag @jvpindiana. If you have a public Instagram account, add @jvpindiana as a collaborator on your post.

You may also upload your video here (all uploaded files will be deleted by 12/29/25).

Take a photo of yourself holding a handmade sign with any/all of these messages:

• I am fasting for 24 hours in solidarity with Gaza. 

• The Israeli government is starving over 2 million people and we must act. Support children and families in Gaza by donating at bit.ly/in4meca

• Did you know? Indiana invests over $100 million in Israel bonds—loans to the Israeli government.

• Tell elected officials to divest from genocide, invest in Indiana, and stop starving Gaza. 

• Visit indianafastforgaza.com.

• Let Gaza Live

• Stop Starving Gaza

• Divest from Genocide

• Stop Arming Israel

Share your photo to your personal social media and tag @jvpindiana. If you have a public Instagram account, add @jvpindiana as a collaborator on your post.

You may also upload your photo here (all uploaded files will be deleted by 12/29/25).

Sending direct asks to people in your networks is a powerful way to mobilize our communities in solidarity with the people of Gaza. Avoid sending mass emails/texts—a personal ask is more effective! Use your testimonial, or see the example email below for ideas.

Example:

Dear [Name],

Tomorrow I am joining the Indiana Fast for Gaza to bring attention to the Israeli government’s starvation of over 2 million people in Gaza. I’m joining people across the state of Indiana who are fasting to fundraise for direct aid and pressure our elected officials to stop starving Gaza. 

Why am I fasting? Despite the October ceasefire, the Israeli military continues to block food and supplies from entering Gaza through the Rafah crossing. Over 2 million people, including 1 million children, face famine with one in every three people going days without any food at all. My respect for the dignity of human life compels me to take action, and fasting is a powerful way to show solidarity, mobilize others, and pressure elected officials.

Will you join me in contacting Senator Todd Young and Indiana State Treasurer Daniel Elliott, asking them to let food into Gaza and divest from Israel bonds? Every voice matters.

Second, can you donate to the Middle East Children’s Alliance, which is still finding ways to meet the needs of children and families on the ground in Gaza?

Finally, I encourage you to visit indianafastforgaza.com to learn more ways you can mobilize our community, including hosting a letter-writing event, sharing flyers, and even signing up for a collective fast if you are able.

I appreciate your support and would love to chat with you about getting involved. It’s easy to feel hopeless watching the news, but we have power if we act together!

Thanks,

[Your name]

Write to your local paper to share your testimonial or a brief summary of your fast and the calls to action!

Tips

• Search the news for a story directly or indirectly related to starvation in Gaza and reference the story in the opening of your letter

• Follow the submission guidelines of the publications (many have a word limit)

• Make it personal—share why the issue matters to you and how your identities inform your perspective on the issue (e.g. healthcare worker, teacher, member of clergy, Jewish, Palestinian, etc.)

• End with a call to action: contact Todd Young and Daniel Elliott, and visit indianafastforgaza.com

Submission Links for Indiana Publications

• IndyStar (Indianapolis)

• Journal & Courier (Lafayette)

• Indiana Daily Student (Bloomington)

• The Herald-Times (Bloomington)

• The Times of Northwest Indiana

• South Bend Tribune (South Bend)

• The Journal Gazette (Fort Wayne)

• Star Press (Muncie)

• Kokomo Tribune (Kokomo)

• Courier & Press (Evansville)

What is Happening in Gaza?

For two years, the Israeli military has bombed and attacked over two million people in Gaza. Israeli attacks have directly killed at least 68,000 people, including over 20,000 children.

The true death toll is likely hundreds of thousands greater, after accounting for bodies still trapped under rubble and deaths due to disease, starvation, and inadequate care caused by the Israeli military’s near-complete destruction of civil infrastructure.

For three months, the Israeli military blocked all food and supplies from entering Gaza. In May, they claimed to allow aid to enter. But Israeli soldiers and US contractors killed over 1000 people and wounded thousands more at “death traps” masquerading as aid distribution sites.

In August, the UN declared famine in Gaza. In September, they determined the Israeli government is committing genocide there. On October 10, a ceasefire went into effect, but Israel has repeatedly violated it.

Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 200 Palestinians between October 10 and October 30, while the Israeli military continues to severely restrict the entry of food and supplies into Gaza.

What is Indiana Fast for Gaza?

People of faith and conscience across the state refuse to go on with business as usual while watching people starve and die daily in Gaza. For 93 days from August 3 to November 3, 80 people across Indiana took 24-hour shifts of a continuous fast in solidarity with the people of Gaza.

Now, we are holding collective fasts, where groups choose the same fast day and engage in collective action around their fast.

Indiana Fast for Gaza is an act of public resistance, confronting US complicity in the Israeli government’s starvation of people in Gaza.

What do you hope to accomplish?

While fasting alone won’t feed Gaza, we believe in our collective power to force an end to the immediate crisis and bring justice closer. Jewish Voice for Peace Indiana and other faith and community leaders organized the Indiana Fast for Gaza to encourage collective action and mount public pressure on our elected officials to stop the genocide in Gaza. Our three action items are: 

1. Contact Indiana State Treasurer Daniel Elliott to ask that he stop buying and renewing Israel bonds—loans to the Israeli government that enable it to bomb and starve Gaza.

2. Contact US Senator Todd Young (IN) to ask that he do everything in his power to get nutrient-rich aid and food into Gaza.

3. Raise funds for the Middle East Children’s Alliance to provide urgent aid to children and families in Gaza. 

How can Indiana divest from genocide?

Indiana State Treasurer Daniel Elliott is ultimately responsible for investing state funds, including our tax dollars. Currently Indiana has invested $115 million in Israel bonds—meaning the state has loaned $115 million to the Israeli government in exchange for fixed-rate interest and repayment of the loan when the bond matures. This ranks among the highest investments in Israel bonds among US states, municipalities, and pension funds. (Little Sis Public Accountability Initiative 2024, FOX59 2025)

Not only do these loans to the Israeli government make us complicit in its campaign of bombing and starvation against people in Gaza, they are also a terrible financial investment. Investors cannot sell the bonds before they mature, meaning they cannot make gains by choosing to sell bonds when the market price is higher. This makes Israel bonds lower reward and higher risk compared to similar fixed-rate investments. 

Moreover, the top three credit rating agencies have rated the Israeli government’s credit outlook for the future as negative, meaning the risk that it will not repay bonds has increased and further downgrades to its rating are expected. (S&P, Fitch, and Moody’s, 2024). For any other country’s bonds, Indiana law requires that they have the highest investment credit rating by at least two national credit rating agencies. But lawmakers made an explicit exception for Israel—the Treasurer can invest in Israel bonds with no restrictions. (Indiana Code 5-13-10.5-10)

State Treasurer Daniel Elliott can reduce Indiana’s financial risk and our complicity with genocide by not buying or renewing Israel bonds. He has both a moral and fiduciary responsibility to do so. We call on Treasurer Elliott as our elected official to divest from genocide and make sound investments that will increase funding for services that Indiana residents truly need like healthcare, education, affordable housing, and clean energy.

How can Congress end the siege and get food into Gaza?

The Israeli government would not be able to continue bombing and starving the people of Gaza without the military, financial, and political support of the US government. Several resolutions have been raised in Congress to limit funding to the Israeli military, stop sending offensive weapons to Israel, or allow humanitarian aid into Gaza. So far, none have passed. 

As Indiana residents, we are often in a discouraging position when it comes to calling on our Senators to take action. But with regard to food aid, Senator Todd Young has shown a willingness to act in the past. In 2022, he coauthored a bipartisan resolution condemning the use of starvation as a weapon of war, and championed humanitarian efforts in Yemen and Ukraine.

We are asking him to fulfill the same moral obligation now in Gaza. There are shipments of ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) packets, which are only used to treat malnourished children, waiting at Rafah to cross into Gaza. Sen. Young has the ability to apply political pressure and urge the Israeli government to allow such nutrition to reach the starving children who so desperately need it, and he must act now.

Why Donate to Middle East Children’s Alliance (MECA)?

MECA’s Emergency Fund for Gaza supports a network of grassroots community organizations that are diligently stretching what food and supplies they can procure to reach as many displaced families as possible. MECA is prepared to expand their efforts as the ceasefire allows. Their steadfast staff and volunteers will continue to do everything they can for their communities.

• Pass out flyers at a public event or in your favorite local business (with permission)

• Host or invite others to host a letter writing event—handwritten letters and postcards are harder for elected officials to ignore!

• Organize a vigil with your congregation or other community group

• Share in a newsletter to your congregation or community group

• Feeling creative? Make art however you feel called—designing flyers or posters, painting banners, composing music—and display or perform it publicly to get the word out!

• Tell us about your action here so we track the reach of this campaign!