On Wednesday afternoon more than a thousand protestors descended on Hollywood wearing Jewish kippahs and Palestinian keffiyehs. They shared a common goal: to stop the war in Gaza.
The rally was organized by Jewish activist groups If Not Now and Jewish Voice for Peace, which oppose the Israeli military’s attack on Gaza and support the Palestinian freedom movement. The massive crowd marched from De Longpre Park to Hollywood Blvd. and Highland Ave, where protestors sat in the intersection blocking traffic for from about 3 to 7 p.m.
“As a Jew with Israeli family, I grieve the loss of more than 1,200 Israeli lives and I grieve the loss of Palestinian lives of the more than 11,000 killed,” said Michael Wolfe, Jewish Voice for Peace Organizer, referring to statistics from the Israel Government and Health Ministry in Gaza.
“I will continue to grieve but I will not allow my grief to be used as a weapon of war.”
Protestors called on local representatives to support the ceasefire bill in the House of Representatives, which as of Wednesday, had garnered the support of 31 representatives.
While the march was coordinated by Jewish groups, its participants spanned all races and religions, including a strong showing of Arab Americans and activists from the Black Lives Matter movement.
“This is a moment of unity. I see you Jews, Muslims, Christians, people of all faith, of no faith, I see you fellow humans,” said Palestinian-American activist Hedab Tarifi. “We refused for this genocide to be committed in our name, Gaza has the right to live.”
As protestors shut down the intersection of Hollywood Blvd. and Highland Ave around 3 p.m. they unfurled large banners with messages like “Hollywood the world is watching” and “Ceasefire” written in the style of the Hollywood sign.
The selection of Hollywood for the protest location was not by accident.
“We’re also speaking to the entertainment industry as people who are constantly imagining possible…
Read the full article here
