'Cease-fire now.' Protesters disrupt Cory Booker election rally as political turmoil grows

U.S. Sen. Cory Booker's get-out-the-vote speech on Sunday, two days before Election Day, came to a stunning halt as many in the audience erupted in chants of "cease-fire now," with some holding up red-dyed hands to symbolize the blood of more than 10,000 Gazans reported killed by Israeli airstrikes.

The protest in South Brunswick, widely shared in videos on social media Sunday evening, was the latest sign that tensions over the Israel-Hamas war and the bombing of Gaza are resonating deeply in American and New Jersey politics.

In videos posted online, Booker is shown urging people to vote. "I want to call out to everybody right now, these final hours, this is what's on the ballot. We should know in New Jersey how privileged we are," he said, before his speech was interrupted by a chorus of chants from across the room.

The chants of "cease-fire now" continued and bloodied hands remained outstretched as the DJ started to play the song "We Are Family." Booker tried a new chant: "Column A, all the way," but it did not catch.

The DJ shouted "Let's make some noise … everybody sing the song," but his upbeat plea did not dispel the protest, which continued as Booker exits the stage.

Protesters also sought to hand-deliver a letter to Booker signed by 65 mosques from across New Jersey. Issued on Friday, the rare joint letter calls for Gov. Phil Murphy and the state's federal senators and congressional delegates to support a cease-fire agreement, humanitarian aid and a lasting solution based on international law.

The letter, which was spearheaded by several of the state's largest mosques, including the Islamic Center of Passaic County and Islamic Society of Central Jersey, said officials had a role in the "dehumanization campaign of the Palestinian people indicating that they are less worthy than others of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

Statements by state and national leaders had stoked Islamophobia and put students and professionals at risk, they wrote. The letter notes that the Quran condemns anyone who takes an innocent life, irrespective of their faith. But they felt, they wrote, that officials have not shown equal concern for Palestinian civilians who have been killed, starved or imprisoned without charges or tried in military courts.

Salaheddin Mustafa, outreach director for the Islamic Center of Passaic County, said the 65 mosques represent much of the state's Muslim population, which numbers at least 320,000.

"We are going to do everything we can, speaking as a community, speaking as a communal voice to make sure our voice is heard, because clearly it has not been for decades, and that is going to change," he said.

On Monday morning, Booker posted on X that he "joined fellow Senators in calling for a short-term cessation of hostilities that pose high-risk to civilians." They stopped short of calling it a cease-fire.

In an emailed statement, Booker's office wrote that "while a temporary pause is critical, it does not solve the fundamental, long-term security and humanitarian issues facing the region." The statement calls for dismantling Hamas and "achieving a lasting peace that guarantees Israel’s right to exist as Jewish and democratic state and ensures the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and a state of their own."

The protest on Sunday reflects a wider frustration among Muslims and their allies. A Data for Progress poll conducted on Oct. 18 and 19 found that 66% of Americans support a U.S. call for a cease-fire, including 80% of Democrats. So far, only one New Jersey member of Congress — Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, a Democrat from Mercer County — has supported a resolution for a cease-fire.

The Middle East conflict could also reverberate in presidential politics, as support for President Joe Biden plummets among Muslims and Arabs, community leaders and advocacy groups warn. In multiple battleground states, where Muslims and Arab communities are concentrated, local leaders say Biden's handling of the war in Gaza and Islamophobia at home has turned off voters.

One national poll by John Zogby Strategies found that just 17% of Arab Americans plan to vote for Biden in 2024 — a staggering drop from 59% in 2020. Among 500 people who were polled, 23% said they identify with the Democratic Party, 32% as Republicans and 31% as independents.

The Arab American Institute, which commissioned the poll, said the responses marked the first time in its 26 years of polling that a majority did not claim to prefer the Democratic Party.

At a massive pro-Palestine rally in Washington, D.C., on Saturday, many speakers focused on Biden's support for Israel's war effort and his opposition to a cease-fire, with one, a member of the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights, referring to the president as "Genocide Joe," USA TODAY reported.

"The language that President Biden and his party understand is the language of votes in the 2024 elections, and our message is: No cease-fire, no votes," said Nihad Awad, national executive director of the Council on American Islamic Relations, drawing huge cheers.

"No votes in Michigan, no votes in Arizona, no votes in Georgia, no votes in Nevada, no votes in Wisconsin, no votes in Pennsylvania," he said, calling out the names of swing states that brought Biden his 2020 victory.

"No votes for you anywhere if you don’t call for a cease-fire now," said Awad, who also said he was speaking in a personal capacity and not for CAIR when he addressed the election.

The speeches at Freedom Plaza were full of grief over the destruction of Gaza and anger about the war, but no one who took the stage Saturday condemned Hamas or its attack on Israel, said Meredith Weisel, capital region director of the Anti-Defamation League.

"There was zero acknowledgment of Israeli suffering," Weisel said in an interview with USA TODAY, "and a lot of legitimizing and justification for violence against Israelis."

This article contains material from USA TODAY.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Israel Hamas war roils state, national politics, disrupts Cory Booker