Solidarity protests sweep U.S.

By Cheryl LaBash

Jan. 5—Attention customarily turns away from news of the world during a holiday week when U.S. schools, organizations and workplaces close. But even so, outraged demonstrations to stop the U.S./Israeli bombing of Gaza flared in every major U.S. metropolitan area more than once and in some cases, daily.

Contributing to this article were Abayomi Azikiwe, Betsey Piette, Bob McCubbin, Brenda Ryan, Bryan Pfeiffer, Dante Strobino, David Dixon, Dianne Mathiowetz, Eric Struch, Frank Neisser, Gloria Rubac, G. Dunkel, Joan Marquardt, John Parker, Kris Hamel, Lou Paulsen, Martha Grevatt, Minnie Bruce Pratt, Phil Wilayto, Scott Williams, Steven Ceci, and Paul Teitelbaum. Other sources include Al-Awda, Arab American News, the Salt Lake Tribune, IMEMC News, and Indymedia.

WW photo: G. Dunkel

When U.S.-made Israeli tanks rolled into Gaza, the escalation into a full military ground invasion served to swell the Jan. 3 mass march that snarled traffic in New York City and moved demonstrators to hit the streets again on Jan. 4 in Houston; San Francisco; Anaheim, Calif.; San Diego; Tucson, Ariz.; and Portland, Ore.

At Israeli embassies, offices of U.S. senators and representatives and busy street corners, with either just a handful or with tens of thousands, Palestinian and Arab organizations are being joined and supported by anti-Zionist Jewish, anti-war, African-American, Latina/o, Asian and labor organizations.

Filled with anguish and anger, 25,000 to 30,000 people rallied in Times Square in New York City on Jan. 3 to protest Israel’s massacre of Palestinians in Gaza. It was one of the largest protests held around the country against Israel. The crowd stretched down Seventh Avenue from 42nd to 36th Street. It swelled in size as people arrived from throughout the region, including busloads from Brooklyn and elsewhere.

People marched through midtown Manhattan to the Israeli Mission to the United Nations, where the five-hour demonstration ended with another rally. There were a huge number of children in the protest. One boy about 4 years old sat on his father’s shoulders rousing the crowd as he shouted over and over “Free, free Palestine!” and “End the Occupation!”

The rally at Times Square was chaired by Raja Abdulhaq of the General Union of Palestine Students; Lamis Deek of Al-Awda; Wael Mousfar, president of the Arab Muslim American Federation; and Sara Flounders of the International Action Center. Speakers denounced the U.S. for its role in the massacre and the billions of dollars in aid it sends to the terrorist state of Israel every year. And they criticized President-elect Barak Obama for failing to speak out against Israel. Samia Halaby, a long-time Palestinian activist and artist, told the crowd that it is time to up the ante and ask the international community to disarm Israel or “the whole world will go into Intifada and disarm Israel.” Larry Holmes from the Troops Out Now Coalition declared, “The whole world is with Gaza.”

In Houston, over 1,000 came out to the Israeli Consulate on Jan. 2, mostly from the Palestinian and Arab community, but also others from the progressive community, including African Americans, Latina/os and whites. Palestinian youth led the chants and large extended families participated. Each of the daily demonstrations has seen carloads of Palestinian youth, in pickup trucks as well as hanging out of car windows and standing in moon roofs, flying large Palestinian flags and cheering the crowds as they drive up and down the streets.

Ester King, a representative of the Black Heritage Society, which is organizing its 31st annual Martin Luther King Jr. parade this month, participated in the Jan. 4 demonstration. He told the leaders of the Palestinian community that not only could they be in the parade for Dr. King, but they should lead the parade. “If Dr. King were alive today, he would be standing out here on the street with us supporting the people in Gaza. We welcome you to our parade and the Black Heritage Society will be a member of the Houston Coalition for Justice and Peace in Palestine and be at the next meeting,” he said.

Hundreds of people have protested at the Texas Capitol in Austin almost every day for a week demanding an end to the Israeli attacks.

In San Antonio there have been two demonstrations, one at the federal building and another in front of the Alamo on Jan. 3, when ground troops entered Gaza. According to longtime activist Johnny Martinez, over a hundred people gathered. Speakers included Tom Keene with the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty and John Stanford, a Communist Party organizer for over 40 years.

Over a thousand gathered at the federal building in Dallas on Jan. 2 where they expressed their outrage at the attacks on Gaza and marched to Ferris Plaza. The Council on American-Islamic Relations and several mosques organized this rally. On Dec. 30 in Dallas hundreds gathered at Dealey Plaza.

Immediate responses came from Arizona on Dec. 30 when 100 gathered in Tucson and 80 in Phoenix demanding a ceasefire. On a rainy Jan. 4 night, 185 people countered a pro-Zionist “Stand with Israel” event in Tucson chanting, “End the Occupation Now!” and “Free Gaza!”

An emergency action hit the streets of Anaheim, Calif., just south of Los Angeles, on Jan. 4. It followed large demonstrations at the Los Angeles Israeli Consulate on Jan. 2 and Dec. 30 that forced police to close busy Wilshire Boulevard. More than 1,500 people participated on Dec. 29 in Anaheim. A coalition made up of Al-Awda, Muslim student organizations and many others, including the International Action Center and ANSWER, are mobilizing. The next demonstrations are scheduled for Jan. 6 at the Israeli Consulate and Jan. 10 at the Westwood Federal Building, both in Los Angeles.

On Dec. 30 several thousand Palestinians and supporters held a loud and militant march through downtown San Francisco. According to ABC news, the chants could be heard in the Israeli Consulate several floors above the street. On Jan. 4 an impromptu street meeting and literature distribution answered the Israel’s land invasion.

In San Diego on Jan. 4, 500 demonstrators responded to the Israeli land invasion of Gaza. The strong and angry demonstration marched through Balboa Park and out-chanted 50 Zionist provocateurs, who were forced to retreat. On Jan. 2 and Dec. 30 large demonstrations targeted the downtown Federal Building.

The Palestinian community came out in large numbers for a statewide rally and march held in Columbus, Ohio, on Jan. 5. The demonstration was called by Justice for Palestine, based on the campus of Ohio State University. Around 700 participated, chanting “Yes, we can free Palestine!”

In Cleveland on Dec. 29, with less than 48 hours notice, 250 people came out to a demonstration in the downtown area called by the Middle East Peace Forum. Arab and Muslim representatives asked the crowd if, after Friday prayers in the mosques, they would come to another demonstration. Everyone raised their hand. That protest on Jan. 2 drew, according to organizers, over 1,000 people. A march followed with “We give our blood and our soul for Palestine!” among the slogans chanted in Arabic.

In Dayton, Ohio, on Jan. 2 about 120 people organized by Al-Awda found the most positive responses from passersby came from African Americans.

In Chicago, about 5,000 Palestinians, Arabs and Muslims of all ages, joined by supporters from other progressive communities and movements, packed into Pioneer Plaza in front of the Chicago Tribune building on Jan. 2 in solidarity with the struggling people of Gaza. A contingent of 70 traveled from the Milwaukee, Wis., Islamic Center to join this massive gathering.

Hit hard since 2001 by U.S. state terror, deportations and frame-up trials, the Arab and Muslim participants were in an enthusiastic mood despite the bitter cold. Activists called it the largest outpouring from Chicago’s Palestinian community in 20 years.

Hemmed in by police lines, the tightly packed crowd heard from community speakers and supporters, and then poured across the Michigan Avenue Bridge to continue their protest in front of the Israeli Consulate.

This was the fifth Chicago action in support of Gaza in a week.

More than 500 people attended the Dec. 28 Chicago rally at the Water Tower Park in the posh North Michigan Avenue shopping area. Palestinian and Arab-American youth proudly displayed Palestinian flags as they denounced U.S.-backed Zionist aggression. The flag of the Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah was well received by the crowd.

One protester brought an Israeli flag attached to a broom with a pair of shoes tied to it, a reference to Muntader Al-Zaidi’s heroic act of resistance to the U.S. occupation of Iraq. Many Palestinian, Arab-American and Muslim grassroots and community organizations participated, including Al-Awda.

In Minneapolis 40 protesters occupied Sen. Amy Klobuchar’s office on Dec. 30 for two hours until she met with them.

On Jan. 3 in Buffalo, N.Y., over 150 demonstrators faced down single-digit cold weather and equally icy police to protest the most recent Israeli bombing of Gaza and assault on Palestinian self-determination. The University of Buffalo Organization of Arab Students, the Lackawanna Discussion Group Commission on Rights, the Buffalo/Western New York International Action Center, the Western New York Peace Center and the University of Buffalo Progressive Alliance called the rally to “oppose U.S.-Israeli crimes in Gaza” and “resolutely defend Palestinian rights.” Pushing out into the street from both sides of a busy intersection at Elmwood Avenue and Bidwell Parkway, people shouted in English, “Stop U.S. aid to Israel!” and in Arabic, “With our determination and our blood, Gaza, we defend you!”

Throughout the two-and-a-half-hour demonstration, car horns blared almost constantly, as passing drivers made known their support for Palestine and many stopped to take leaflets. Toward the end of the rally, as night was falling, police lined the street with their cars and attempted but failed to intimidate the crowd. On Dec. 30 some 200 mostly Palestinian, Yemeni and other Arab youth demonstrated.

More than 100 people protested in front of the Federal Building on State Street in Rochester, N.Y., on Jan. 2. At the rally, shouts of “Long Live Palestine!” overrode the sounds of rush-hour traffic. It was the second rally in front of that Federal Building this week.

On Jan. 3 in Boston, about 1,500 people took to the streets to protest the U.S./Israeli genocide in Gaza. Chanting “Free, Free Palestine!” “From the River to the Sea, Palestine will Free!” and “We Support the Resistance!” the demonstrators marched through the main shopping area of downtown Boston, stopping at the U.S. military recruiters office and the Israeli Consulate for minirallies. The demonstration, called by an ad-hoc coalition, was led by a militant contingent of Palestinian youth.

The demonstration was co-chaired by longtime Palestinian activists Ahmad Kawash from the International Action Center and Kathy Hanna from Gaza on Our Minds. Kawash called for solidarity and support of the resistance in Palestine. Representatives of local mosques spoke.

Stevan Kirschbaum, a Jewish trade unionist from USW 8751 and the IAC, said support for the people of Gaza and their struggle means supporting their organizations and leaders who are conducting that struggle—the Hamas-led resistance.

Miya Campbell of FIST saluted Hamas and the resistance in front of the military recruiters and raised Cynthia McKinney’s struggle to bring material support to Gaza on the ship Dignity, which was attacked by an Israeli patrol boat.

Earlier in Boston, there was a march of 120 people on Dec. 28 from Park Street to Copley Square with strong Palestinian participation, a rush-hour distribution on Dec. 29 and a demonstration Dec. 30 at the Israeli Consulate.

On Jan. 3 around 1,000 people stretched across the steps in front of Philadelphia’s City Hall with a banner “War is Terrorism with a Bigger Budget—Stop U.S.-Israeli War on Palestinians.” The rally and march targeted U.S. funding for the Israeli war against the Palestinian people in Gaza. Speakers linked budget cuts in Philadelphia that will close 11 libraries to U.S. funding of Israeli bombs being dropped on elementary schools in Gaza. Passing motorists honked in support.

A 10-foot banner with enlarged photos graphically illustrating the carnage from Israel’s bombs was presented to FOX camera crews filming the rally since these images are rarely shown by U.S. media outlets.

The demonstration was initiated by the Philadelphia International Action Center, with strong support from local Arab, Muslim and Palestinian groups and peace and justice organizations. More than 100 people protested outside the Israeli Consulate in Philadelphia on Dec. 28 and again on Dec. 30.

In Baltimore on Dec. 30 some 80 mostly young people attended an emergency demonstration in support of Gaza at the War Memorial Plaza.

In Washington, D.C., on Jan. 2 several thousand people rallied at the Israeli Consulate and marched to the Egyptian Consulate, where protesters began beating on the plastic road barriers set up in front. A long standoff between the protesters and the police followed. Chants called Egyptian President Mubarak a Zionist, denouncing his refusal to let in medical supplies and demanding the tearing down of the wall that prevents movement between Gaza and Egypt.

Three mothers from the Atlantic Life Community, Heidi Schloegel, Ellen Grady and Clare Grady, were arrested outside the Israeli Embassy. Their organization has been petitioning embassy officials for an end to Israeli air strikes on Gaza. The three approached the embassy gate singing “Peace, Salaam, Shalom” and holding signs which read “Peace” “Stop the killing” and “Stop the war on the children.” They were held in D.C. jails overnight and finally released the following day. Irish-Americans carried Irish flags comparing the struggles against British colonialism in Ireland to the ongoing occupation of Palestine.

Organizers included the Muslim America Society Freedom Foundation, ANSWER, the Arab American Free Palestine Alliance, the National Council of Arab Americans, and Al-Awda—the International Palestine Right to Return Coalition. Over 50 people, mostly Arab youth, caravanned up from Raleigh, N.C. The caravan was organized by Khalilah Sabra of the Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation. Earlier, on Dec. 30, ANSWER held a demonstration at the State Department.

On Jan. 5 more than 400 mostly Palestinian youth and community members, as well as various social justice activists, converged at the steps of North Carolina State University’s Bell Tower on Hillsborough Street in Raleigh, N.C., to protest the continuing massacre of Palestinians in Gaza. Chanting “Resistance is justified when freedom is denied!” and “Free, Free Palestine!” the swelling crowd demanded an end to the US-supported attacks by Israel and called for an end to the criminal occupation of Palestine. A newly formed student group at N.C. State University called Palestine United organized the demonstration and effectively mobilized the mostly youthful crowd, while also bringing many people from area mosques and Muslim organizations.

On Sat., Jan. 3 over 200 people gathered in downtown Durham, N.C., for an event organized by sisters in UBUNTU, a women-of-color, survivor-led organization based in Durham that was formed in response to the Duke Lacrosse rape case. Many organizations and people throughout the Durham/Raleigh/Chapel Hill area helped to build for the rally, including Raleigh Fight Imperialism, Stand Together (FIST), Black Workers for Justice, Al-Awda N.C. and others.

Speakers included Manju Rajendran, Alexis Pauline Gumbs, Dannette Sharpley and Beth Brunch from UBUNTU; the Rev. Carl Kenney, founder of Compassion Ministries in Durham; Ajamu Dillahunt from Black Workers for Justice; and Feras Abdelquader, a Palestinian student.

On Jan. 3 in Charlotte, N.C., more than 500 people gathered in Marshall Park for a rally and march where protesters, with Palestinian and Muslim youth at the forefront, took over downtown Charlotte with a sea of Palestinian flags and energetic chants. When the march crossed the street and made a U-turn, heading for a street rally at “The Square,” more than three blocks were filled to both sides of the street with demonstrators.

Echoing throughout the downtown area were chants of “Free, Free Gaza!” “Free, Free Palestine!” “Occupation Is a Crime!” “Shame, Shame Israel!” “Stop Killing Children!” “Stop The Killing! Stop The War!” “Stop Supporting Israel!” and “Money for Jobs and Education! Not Israeli Occupation!” Public support for the demonstration was overwhelmingly positive with car horns blaring and cheers and waves of support.

A small vigil held New Year’s Day at Seventh Street and Pecan Avenue in Charlotte, N.C., got the same kind of public support. Almost every passing vehicle honked or waved in response to a “Honk for Peace in Gaza” sign. Even some young people going by on bikes repeatedly said, “Honk, honk, honk.”

On Jan. 3 in Atlanta more than 500 people massed in front of CNN, took to the streets in a spirited march and rallied at Woodruff Park with two black caskets draped with Palestinian flags and more than 100 signs with the names of people who have died in the assault.

Then the protesters, determined to have their message heard, again filled Marietta Street and returned to the CNN building to continue the demonstration for another half hour.

This action was preceded by protests at the Israeli Consulate on Sunday, Dec. 28 and Tuesday, Dec. 30.

On Jan. 2 more than 60 people turned out in Richmond, Va., to protest the ongoing Israeli attacks on the Palestinian people of Gaza. The City Hall protest was initiated by longtime Richmond African-American activist Umar Kenyatta and sponsored by the newly formed Coalition of Conscientious Organizations. Activists in Norfolk and Blacksburg, Va., also organized demonstrations.

On Jan. 3 nearly a thousand chanting pro-Palestinian demonstrators lined a busy intersection at Orchard Lake and Maple Roads in Bloomfield Hills, in suburban Detroit. The day before, nearly a thousand who represented varying ethnic and religious backgrounds gathered at the Dearborn, Mich., City Hall braving frigid temperatures and high winds to show solidarity with the Palestinians at a candlelight vigil. At this rally, Michigan Emergency Coalition Against War and Injustice (MECAWI) activist Jerry Goldberg told the crowd, “As a Jew, I stand here today in solidarity with Palestine.”

At the earlier demonstration on Dec. 30, 5,000 people lined an Arab community shopping district along Warren Avenue.

A small group of placard-waving pro-Palestinian demonstrators gathered near U.S. President-elect Barack Obama’s vacation retreat in Hawaii on Dec. 30 to protest the Israeli air strikes in Gaza. Also on Dec. 30 Miami and Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Seattle, Bellingham and Tacoma, Wash., protested.

In St. Louis, protests began with a vigil on Dec. 28 and continued daily including the Dec. 31 and Jan. 1 holidays with bannering at busy shopping areas and the offices of Sen. Kit Bond and Rep. Russ Carnahan.

In Portland, Ore., on Jan. 2, 200 people braved the cold and sleet to voice their opposition to the Israeli attacks in Gaza, and called on Sen. Ron Wyden to support equal rights for the Palestinian people. Wyden reportedly cancelled a town hall meeting after protesters announced they would attend. Other Portland protests were held on Dec. 28 and Dec. 29.

Demonstrations were hold in Denver at the state Capitol building on Dec. 30 and Jan. 3, and on Dec. 31, New Year’s Eve, in Salt Lake City.

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