Tampa, FL – At the early hour of 5:00 a.m., Oct. 11, over 25 activists gathered at the entrance of the Tampa Port. Organized by the network of activists called Block the Boat, the crowd built more support among International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) Local 1402 workers, to stop Israeli shipping. The goal of the Block the Boat movement is to place economic pressure on Israel to stop killing and oppressing Palestinians.

There is a growing number of students participating in the Boycott, Divest And Sanction (BDS) campaign against Israeli apartheid and rallying against ZIM – an Israeli shipping company – is a part of that movement.

In September the Block the Boat group was able to delay the ZIM Alabama ship from docking on time.

The presence of Block the Boat was welcomed by many truckers and workers arriving in the port. Many waved as they drove by and honked in support.

At one point a caravan of five vehicles drove close to the entrance of the port, with participants in the protest chanting “Free, free Palestine!” and honking in support of the other activists in the protest zone. Port Security along with Tampa Police pulled all of the cars over and cited the majority of the drivers.

Protests will continue and people are encouraged to participate in the movement against Israeli apartheid. You can visit blocktheboattampa.org for more information on upcoming events.

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The protesters gathered around the entrance to the port with signs and received support from people driving in and out of the Port of Tampa.

Danya Zituni of Students for Justice in Palestine remarked, “…the ‘Block the Boat’ protest at the channel side docks had a major impact. It cost the Israeli shipping company Zim tens of thousands of dollars in fuel and related costs to redirect their boat. With an increased turnout for the next scheduled time of return, we can possibly prevent the boat from docking at all. It's our responsibility to boycott Israeli companies that profit off the 67-year genocide of Palestinians.”

This protest is part of the Block the Boat campaign, itself a part of the boycott, divest and sanction movement to bring down Israeli apartheid. Block the Boat began in Oakland, California and has since spread to places such as Tacoma, Seattle, Los Angeles, and now Tampa.

After the protest, organizers agreed to have a planning meeting on Sept. 3. The Zim Alabama will face another protest two weeks from now, when it returns with more Israeli goods to dock in Tampa.

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