Minneapolis marks Palestinian Land Day
Minneapolis, MN – It was an unseasonably warm spring day in Minneapolis, as around 50 people gathered in the Cedar Riverside neighborhood to mark the 50th annual observance of Palestinian Land Day.
Land Day is a commemoration of the 1976 general strike against the Israeli government’s seizure of Arab-owned land in the Galilee region. By the end of the day, six unarmed Palestinians were dead and over a hundred were injured. Since then, the day has become a commemoration of the Palestinians’ defiant struggle for their land, as well as a day of solidarity.
For the 50th observance of Land Day, the Mayday Plaza in Minneapolis served as the venue. Layna Crandall of the MN Anti War Committee (AWC) told the crowd, “We chose this location because we often hold protests in Mayday Plaza, but Cedar-Riverside is also where a large part of our Somali community lives, and is close by to Little Earth, which houses many of our native community members. This year we wanted to connect all of these struggles.”
Community members demonstrated support through honks, waves and raised fists throughout the protest
The indigenous dance group Danzaketzalb declared their solidarity with the struggle. Seppo Niemi-Colvin of the AWC stated Land Day “serves as a reminder that we still need to preserve and defend Palestinian and indigenous land, and fight to return what Israel and empire have stolen.”
Niemi-Colvin stated, “A key aspect of our divestment campaign is that where the enemy touches us is where we touch the enemy. Companies such as Palantir or Elbit may seem far off and hard to reach, but through state investments we are tied together and we can deal a blow by severing that connection. The point of days of action like Land Day is not just what we can accomplish on that day alone, but it is the building and flexing of organizational muscles that continue beyond that day.”
Maamoun Slayhi of American Muslims for Palestine stated, “I grew up knowing what a fighter jet sounds like. I grew up knowing what a bomb sounds like. I grew up knowing what it looks like when they fall. And we all knew that there was a part of our land that no longer belonged to us. It felt like a piece of us had been taken, because if at any time you tried to go down there, you could be attacked.”
Morgan Budiandri of the MN Immigrant Rights Action stated, “The parallels of Israeli apartheid and U.S. racial oppression are deafening. The perpetrators of genocide are the same as those of deportation. Both systems purposely dehumanize men, women and children to try to break them. But the desire for justice cannot be broken.”
Nadiyah Salawdeh of the US Palestinian Community Network stated, “Land Day is about honoring those that we have lost in the fight for our land and for our liberation. It is also about recommitting ourselves to the fight that is still to come.”
White Wolf of the White Earth Nation closed the event with a traditional song of healing.