Sacramento Stands with Gaza
By Ras H. Siddiqui

Close to a thousand people gathered at four streetcorners outside Arden Fair Mall in Sacramento, California on November 4 th calling for an immediate cessation of all hostilities in Gaza, to end the offensive by the Israeli military there. The fact is that thousands of people have already been killed in what clearly amounts to a full-scale war on an urban civilian population living in a small strip of land, a place which has no army, air force or navy to offer resistance. And amongst those killed or maimed, it has been the children who have continued to suffer the most. 

Another interesting fact which could have been overlooked by many mainstream media outlets is that protests like these are not dying out. From what we have seen, the number of people participating in them have steadily been increasing. This is at least true here in Sacramento, and in San Francisco where tens of thousands of people marched on the same day, calling for hostilities to end. In the eyes of the world, this war is becoming an embarrassment for the international community as it appears to be aimed at defenseless civilians. The Netanyahu-led Israeli government may not care about it now, but there are already whispers of war crimes. Even the Biden administration is starting to have some second thoughts.

There is a broad understanding that groups like the terrorist organization Hamas (which were once assisted by Israel and used as a counter to the PLO and the Palestinian Authority) find their sustenance and reason for being in the Israeli occupation of Gaza and the West Bank. That is one reason why the slogans to end the occupation are heard at such protests. Hamas must be condemned in the strongest terms, but if the objective is to eliminate them, it cannot be achieved by alienating the population that they hide in. Bombing and killing thousands will only help them find future recruits. 

This time the focus of this rally was beyond just the ending of the occupation. The crowd was protesting what it called the ongoing genocide in Gaza. And the people gathered were as diverse as one could find in the Sacramento community. And women were most prominent. There were African Americans, Asians, Christians, Jews, Middle Easterners, Pakistanis, Persians, and even members of the LGBT community. The calls for an immediate ceasefire were pronounced and prominent. And Palestinian pride was not absent as the flag of the occupied country flew high. 

From one who has been reporting on community events for over 30 years from Northern California, one observation should give us hope. All of these young people gathered here in an event held under the umbrella of “The Sacramento Regional Coalition For Palestinian Rights” came because they care for human life. They were not being selective because the death of children (Palestinian or Israeli) should, and does, rattle our collective conscience. So, a big shout out to all of you. You give us once idealistic old folks a glimmer of hope.

One must also once again commend the Jewish Voice for Peace (Sacramento) for being a very visible part of this rally and for standing with the local Palestinian groups in many other protests over the past few years. There are many well-meaning people in both the Jewish and the Palestinian community here in America who have suddenly been challenged by recent events. And not just by the Hamas attacks on October 7 th but also what has transpired since then. The task is huge, but they should continue to support a pathway towards peaceful coexistence in the Israel-Palestine context. There is no other realistic option. And lastly, it is America which needs to show leadership not partisanship in helping to resolve this horrid mess.