San Jose protests Netanyahu's visit to Washington DC
San Jose, CA – A group of 50 protesters gathered at San Jose City Hall, July 24, to protest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to the U.S. and his address to Congress. The protest demanded an end to U.S. government support for the Israeli genocide of Palestinians.
Signs bearing the slogans “All victory to the Palestinian resistance,” “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” and “End U.S. aid to Israel” were carried by a significant portion of the crowd. Onlookers were friendly, with many passing cars giving honks of support.
Describing the genocide of the Palestinians as “the most blatant crime against humanity of our time,” Andy Schaefer of San Jose Against War called Netanyahu a “war criminal” who “has friends on both sides of the aisle.”
Schaefer also stated, “Our task remains the same. Keep the attention on the genocide,” adding, “We were in the streets for Palestine since before October 7. We demanded ceasefire before the Democrats decided it was trendy enough to take up, our cause is righteous and our demands reasonable.”
Thai Nguyen, an organizer with San Jose Against War, said, “The people are on the side of Palestine. Just yesterday, seven major unions called on the Biden administration to immediately halt all military shipments to Israel. If you are here right now, you are on the right side of history.”
The action was called by San Jose Against War, a grassroots anti-war organization in San Jose.