Chris Smalls Is Coming Home; Will This Shake the US Labor Movement Into Action on Gaza?

Early Thursday morning, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition announced that Amazon Labor Union founder Chris Smalls had been released from Israeli prison.

According to the group, Smalls is currently on his way to the Allenby Bridge border crossing between the West Bank and Jordan. From Jordan, he is expected to fly to JFK.

Labor Party USA, an organization founded by Smalls, confirmed on Instagram that they were planning a welcoming party for him at KFK Airport on Friday morning.

Smalls' detention and arrest caused international outrage.

With Smalls returning to the United States, it will be interesting to see whether he speaks publicly about his beating at the hands of the IDF, which will draw more attention to the plight of Palestinians within the labor movement.

On Saturday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) boarded the Handala, a ship associated with the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, that was attempting to reach Gaza with supplies for starving Palestinians. The IDF detained 21 activists, who had their hands held up, in graphic images that the Freedom Flotilla Coalition captured.

On Monday, details emerged that not only was Smalls detained, but he was physically beaten by the IDF. He was the only Black member of the Freedom Flotilla on the Handala.

"The Freedom Flotilla Coalition confirms that upon arrival in Israeli custody, U.S. human rights defender, Christian Smalls, was physically assaulted by seven uniformed individuals," wrote the Freedom Flotilla Coalition on Instagram. "They choked him and kicked him in the legs, leaving visible signs of violence on his neck and back."

Still, despite Smalls having been profiled by every major media outlet in the U.S. when he successfully led the union drive at Amazon, not a single major media outlet has covered his violent detention by the IDF five days ago.

Even worse, the majority of American unions ignored his beating by the IDF.

Teamsters President Sean O'Brien, whose union the Amazon Labor Union is affiliated with, has yet to denounce his detention. Instead, O'Brien, who famously spoke in praise of Trump at the Republican National Convention last summer, took to social media Tuesday to promote an interview with Tucker Carlson.

Association of Flight Attendants president Sara Nelson did denounce the IDF's beating of Smalls.

"If this is how the IDF treats American citizens traveling with media attention, it brings even more credibility to the reports of their abuses of Palestinian civilians," Nelson wrote on Bluesky late Wednesday. "I stand in solidarity w/ my brother Chris, the civilians in Gaza and all working towards peace and dignity for all. End this horror."

While most American unions stayed silent, the 750,000 member Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), the largest union in Canada, did denounce the IDF's treatment of Smalls.

"CUPE stands in solidarity with U.S. labour leader Chris Smalls and all the activists unlawfully detained by Israel while on board the Freedom Flotilla Handala, delivering aid to Gaza," CUPE wrote on Bluesky late Wednesday. "We condemn this brutality and call for their immediate release."

With Smalls returning to the United States, it will be interesting to see whether he speaks publicly about his beating at the hands of the IDF, which will draw more attention to the plight of Palestinians within the labor movement.

The Amazon Labor Union called on the rest of the labor movement to mobilize to denounce the detention of Amazon Labor Union founder Chris Smalls.

"We honor the call from Palestinian labor unions to disrupt the arms trade and support global workers' actions such as strikes, direct protests, and other efforts," the Amazon Labor Union said in a statement.