Portland, OR - Over 100 people gathered Portland’s Sewallcrest Park on October 7 to protest one year of escalated genocide in Palestine. The date is marked the one year anniversary of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, an operation carried out by Palestinian resistance groups that targeted Israeli military bases just outside of the Gaza strip; a historic display of resistance against the, at the time, 75-year occupation of Palestine. The event was organized by Portland for Palestine.

Signs around the rally read “Stop arming Israel,” “Fund schools not genocide,” “End the occupation” and “Nothing justifies genocide.” 

The rally began with a speech from Mutaz Al-Shawa, a member of Portland for Palestine with direct ties to Gaza, who stated, “this has been going not just for a year, but for over 100 years.” He encouraged the crowd to action, “being quiet and sitting in the back saying ‘oh, I’m sorry,’ this doesn’t help, we have to stand and fight!” 

Speakers for the evening’s program also included members from Resist U.S. Led War PDX, People Organizing for Philippine Solidarity (POPS) and Freedom Road Socialist Organization PDX (FRSO).

 The rally turned into a march down Hawthorne Boulevard, taking up half the street and blocking one-way traffic. During the march, chants such as “We rise up, we mobilize, no more funding genocide!” “We want justice, you say how? Stop bombing Gaza now!” and “Resistance is justified, when people are occupied!” echoed from the crowd and were heard by drivers, shoppers and those dining and sitting outside.

Many people came out of shops and restaurants to observe the march, some recording on their phones and raising their fists in solidarity; cars rolled by and honked and waved their hands out of windows. As the march turned down a residential street to make its way back up the main road, a few people came out of their houses and joined in on chants from their doorsteps. 

Local Oregon news station, KOIN Channel 6, was on the scene to document both the rally and march. The event was featured on the 11 o’clock news that evening. During the segment, the coverage of the protest was juxtaposed by Oregon Senator and AIPAC poster child Ron Wyden’s reassertion that “Israel has a right to defend itself,” a statement he made at a meeting earlier that day. 

The march wrapped up after about one mile back at the park from which it started, with the crowd in unison chanting “Palestine will live forever!”

Kacey Desantis ended the day's events with some closing remarks. “The fight for Palestinian liberation is the fight for liberation of all oppressed people! Going forward, the fight for collective liberation will be hard won by all of us working together. When we dare to struggle, we dare to win!”

When asked about what they thought about the night’s event, Holly Brown stated, “Tonight showed me that the people stand with Palestine. We will continue to show up, march in the streets and demand an end of U.S. aid to Israel, for as long as it takes.” 

Portland for Palestine affirms their commitment to the struggle for Palestinian liberation for as long as Palestine is under occupation. They continue to demand an end of all U.S. aid to Israel in all forms and aim to target the different ways Portland, Oregon is complicit with the Zionist occupation.

#PortlandOR #FreePalestine #PortlandForPalestine #AlAqsaFlood