Thousands take to Michigan Avenue to protest occupation of Palestinian land
A couple of thousand people gathered Sunday afternoon in the Loop, waving Palestinian flags and donning kaffiyehs — Palestinian head scarves — calling for an end to bloodshed and “ethnic cleansing” in the Middle East.
Chicago justice activists — Palestinian, Puerto Rican, Black and others — called for an end of Jewish occupation of Palestinian land.
The violence and aggression over the past week display desperation and need for a just, two-state system, said U.S. Rep. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, D-Chicago.
One poster read: “We haven’t been able to breathe since 1948,” referencing the year when hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fled or were evicted from their homes during the Palestinian War, as well as the common protest refrain “I can’t breathe,” the last words of George Floyd, Eric Garner and others who died at the hands of police.
”This is not a war between two armies,” one of the organizers said, “but an ethnic cleansing campaign that began in 1948 and continues today.”
The crowd of attendees flooded Michigan Avenue at Van Buren Street as they began a slow march, chanting, “Hey hey, ho ho, the occupation has got to go.”
Sam Bakkak, of southwest suburban Plainfield, said his dad was Palestinian, born in Jerusalem. He and his family have been watching the news, but marching and showing support for Palestinians is “the minimum we can do right now.”
”Palestine is under siege in Gaza,” said Bakkak, 43. “Support right now is the only thing we can do.”
