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Biden slammed by pro-Palestine protest during Milwaukee campaign stop

By staff

Pro-Palestine protesters face off with police during President Biden's visit to Milwaukee. | Fight Back! News/staff

Milwaukee, WI – Another visit to Milwaukee by President Biden resulted in a protest by the Wisconsin Coalition for Justice in Palestine (WCJP) to denounce him. On Wednesday, March 13, Biden made multiple stops across Milwaukee, issuing promises to improve the living conditions for Black residents and visit the new Democratic Party headquarters.

The WCJP called for an emergency rally at Dontre Hamilton (Red Arrow) Park and led a crowd of hundreds within sight and sound of the Democratic Party headquarters. Chants of “Free Palestine” and “Genocide Joe” reverberated throughout downtown Milwaukee while the crowd waited for Biden to arrive. The crowd, proudly lifting Palestinian flags and displaying signs demanding an end to the genocide, was met by dozens of cops and members of the Secret Service.

For over two hours, the crowd led chants and sent a clear message to Biden and the rest of the Democratic Party – end U.S. aid to Israel and end the genocide now. Khaled Abukhamireh of the US Palestinian Community Network stated, “Rafah stands as the final sanctuary for the people of Gaza. There is an imminent threat as the genocidal Israeli army prepares to advance, posing a great danger to this beautiful city.”

Channeling the unified energy of the crowd, Audari Tamayo of Students for a Democratic Society at UW-Milwaukee and Freedom Road Socialist Organization said, “Today we’re here to tell Genocide Joe that he’s not welcome here, that he’s not welcome anywhere, and that there’s people here with a conscience. Just as the revolutionary socialist leader Hugo Chavez said, ‘Fuera de aquí yanqui que aquí hay un pueblo unido!’”

The WCJP brought together multiple movements that have become increasingly angrier with the ineptitude of the Biden administration, including the immigrant rights movement. Executive director of Voces de la Frontera, Cristine Neumann-Ortiz, stated, “We’re calling on President Biden to support a ceasefire in Gaza and to use executive action to fulfill campaign promises he made to the Latinos and immigrants here in Wisconsin – to end 287g that makes our communities less safe by deputizing local law enforcement to act as immigration and to expand access to work visas for essential workers and their families and asylum seekers, including Palestinians.”

Biden’s team made it clear that Wednesday’s visit is the first of many he plans to make to Wisconsin in the coming months. As proven by the WCJP’s action, no matter where Biden goes in Wisconsin, there will be a crowd there to confront him.

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