On October 16, over 200 Palestinians and their allies protested outside of the Israeli consulate in Los Angeles. The protest was organized by the ANSWER Coalition along with Al-Awda Palestinian Right of Return Coalition and endorsed by many organizations including American Muslims for Palestine, Palestinian Youth Movement, Jewish Voices for Peace. The rally was organized in response to the escalation of Israeli violence against Palestinians that has resulted in more than 30 deaths in just a couple of weeks. Many more have been injured and arrested.
This violence comes on the heels of raids and restrictions on Al-Aqsa compounds in Jerusalem by Israeli settlers and soldiers. Jerusalem is home to historical and religious sites for Christian and Muslim Palestinians and restricting their access was only the beginning of the attacks. The Israeli government has also intensified its attacks on protestors by giving free reign to Israeli occupation soldiers to shoot live ammunition at Palestinians. Israeli state officials have further encouraged the increase in roaming bands of armed settlers who have instigated the majority of violence in Palestinian neighborhoods.
With all of this the Palestinian people continue to resist. They continue to protest and to protect their neighborhoods from settler and soldier violence. The Los Angeles community showed solidarity with Palestinian resistance with chants like “Black, red, green, white, for Palestine we will fight” and “Resistance is justified when people are occupied.” Filling the area in front of the Israeli Consulate on Wilshire Boulevard, protesters held silhouettes of Palestinian youth brutally murdered by Israeli soldiers and fascist Israeli settler thugs.
Another sentiment of the protest was the responsibility of those in the U.S. to continue to increase awareness and support for the Palestinian cause. The racist and colonialist government can only be defeated by a mass movement of Palestinians and their allies throughout the world demanding an end to the genocide of Palestinians and complete dismantling of the apartheid system.
