One-Year Anniversary of Gaza War at the California State Capitol
By Ras H. Siddiqui
It is hard to believe that when this report is published, the Israeli war on Gaza will have continued into a second year. As if the excesses of the occupation were not enough, this onslaught has continued without any respite, ever since the mysterious and horrific October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas changed the track of the Arab Israeli relationship from heading towards peaceful coexistence to what is now looking more like genocide.
So, Israel has now been fighting against a rag-tag bunch of fighters for over a year after it had previously defeated the combined Arab armies within 6 days in 1967? There are many questions that we can ask as the body count of Palestinians in Gaza, and the West Bank, continues to mount. Another question comes to mind: What kind of people attack music festivals?
This war has had an impact on Muslim-Jewish relations in America. The hard work and effort spent during the past two decades (or more), during which many of us not only promoted but also openly participated in mending fences across religious lines has come to a screeching halt. And it may be quite a while before we can restart this process, one which is currently on hold or has gone underground. It is a shame since we were all getting to know and appreciate one another. Even intermarriages were taking place!
It is against this backdrop that the Sacramento Regional Coalition for Palestinian Rights ( https://sac4palestine.org/ ) held a series of events to mark the one-year anniversary of genocide and resistance starting on Saturday, October 5, 2024, at the western steps of the California State Capitol building. Other events followed on October 7th at Cesar Chavez Park, and back at the Capitol with a Walk through 365 days of genocide on October 8th. We will concentrate on the first event here, one which this writer could physically attend.
On entering the area, we heard a fiery speech by Susan, a representative of the Healthcare Workers for Sacramento for Palestine during which the actions of the Netanyahu Regime in Israel were severely condemned for their callous disregard for human life. We also heard from Adnan, a supporter of the Green Party, who encouraged voters to think Green in the upcoming November elections and pick Jill Stein over Kamala for President. There was a banner/sign or two to that effect prominently displayed here too. He also stressed hope and humanity.
Maggie from the Sacramento Regional Coalition for Palestinian Rights spoke next. She urged Californians to not vote for Kamala Harris. And on electing officials supporting the genocide, she suggested that people should not vote for them (leave it blank). Yassar from the Palestine American League was the last speaker before the march around the Capitol and more. He said that in a couple of days, it is going to mark one year since the atrocity began, and the genocide that hasn’t ended. He pointed out that an element of racism in policymaking was at play.
A small slice of just one event which went on for about three hours was highlighted here. There were other speakers and activities that are not captured in this report. However, one group cannot be left out without being mentioned here. The Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) Sacramento Chapter remains active and participates in many Palestine-related events around the region. And it was good to see them in action here too. It would be an understatement to say that Israel currently has a global image problem and is being associated with crimes that the Jewish people once left Europe to escape from. JVP continues to call a spade a spade by disassociating Jews from horrors being committed in their name.
