Anna Baltzer is a prominent Jewish-American human rights activist, author, and public speaker. A former Fulbright Scholar, her early understanding of the Israel-Palestine conflict was shaped by mainstream narratives. However, a 2003 trip to the West Bank as a volunteer for the International Women’s Peace Service (IWPS) fundamentally shifted her perspective. As the granddaughter of Holocaust survivors, she viewed this “witnessing” as a moral awakening, transforming from a young person who seldom questioned Israeli policy into one of the world’s most articulate advocates for Palestinian rights.
One of Baltzer’s most significant achievements is her book, “Witness in Palestine: A Jewish American Woman in the Occupied Territories,” which uses extensive first-hand photographs and detailed accounts to reveal daily life under occupation. She served for years as the National Organizer for the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR) and has been invited to speak at hundreds of venues worldwide, including the Oxford Union. For her ability to translate complex political deadlocks into moving humanitarian narratives, she was awarded the prestigious “Activist of the Year” award by the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC).
Baltzer is dedicated to ending the occupation through non-violent action and education. She is a steadfast defender of the BDS movement and utilizes her Jewish identity to build bridges between diverse groups, emphasizing that criticizing Israeli government policy is fundamentally distinct from anti-Semitism. She meticulously documents and publicly denounces home demolitions, checkpoint restrictions, and settler violence, advocating for an end to U.S. military aid to Israel. Her stance is rooted in a universal view of human rights: that “Never Again” must apply to every people on earth, including Palestinians, and that only equality based on justice and law can bring true security to both sides.