Wisconsin: Banner drops in Milwaukee and Appleton in solidarity with Palestine
Milwaukee, WI – On November 29, activists in both Milwaukee and Appleton dropped banners over busy highways with a message that read “Long live the popular Palestinian resistance, from Milwaukee to Palestine.” The banner drops coincided with the International Day of Solidarity with Palestinian People and were intended to raise awareness about the ongoing resistance to U.S.-backed Israeli occupation.
“We're came out today to show solidarity to the people of Palestine and support their struggle for freedom,” said Farzad Ghodsi, a member of the newly formed Milwaukee Anti-war Committee. “And with the recent increase in brutality against Palestinians it's becoming more and more important to show that support far and wide.”
In Milwaukee, the Milwaukee Anti-war Committee (MAC) initiated the action and were joined by members from UW-Milwaukee Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) at UW-Milwaukee, the Milwaukee branch of Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), and Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO). The banner, as well as the half dozen Palestinian flags whipping in the wind, were met with many honks from cars passing over the bridge, and some of the drivers even raised a fist. Cars driving by on the highway below also honked in support.
After about an hour, state patrol troopers arrived on the scene to try to shut down the action. While activists agreed to take down the banner, as they’d already been there for the allotted time, they made a short video which included chants of “Free, free Palestine! Long live Palestine!” and “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”, making it clear to the police exactly what they were there for.
The Milwaukee Anti-war Committee is looking to initiate a campaign alongside SDS and SJP on the UWM campus to challenge administration to change the name of the campus library. The building is currently named after Israel’s first woman prime minister, Golda Meir, who grew up in Milwaukee after immigrating from Ukraine in 1905. Meir began her Zionist activities in Milwaukee, going so far as to include settlement in Palestine as a precondition for marriage to her eventual husband Morris Meyerson. Later in her life, during her time as prime minister from 1969-1974, Meir notoriously stated in an interview that “there’s no such thing as Palestinians.” There’s also a public school in Milwaukee that bears Meir’s name.
“UW-Milwaukee and Milwaukee Public Schools claim to want to foster an inclusive environment yet they honor a figure like Meir. It sends a clear message to any Palestinian students and their families who call Milwaukee home,” said Ryan Hamann of FRSO.
Hamann continued, “Administrators are talking out of both sides of their mouths when they say they care about inclusivity and acceptance but then commemorate a person who actively participated in Israeli apartheid, first as a settler and then as prime minister.”
As an immediate follow-up on this initial action, the MAC will be hosting a commemoration of International Human Rights Day in Milwaukee on December 10 from 4 to 7 p.m. at Zao MKE Church. The program will feature speakers from various organizations, including SJP. However, the keynote speaker will be Sarah Wunderlich from the Oneida Nation. Wunderlich will talk about the Supreme Court attack against the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) and the broader struggle for indigenous rights. The MAC hopes that this will become an annual event where the various people’s organizations in the city get together to highlight their efforts to further the cause of rights for all people.