On Jan. 29, over 200 people came out in Chicago to demand an end to the Israeli siege of Gaza. The militant picket
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The demonstration assembled at 5 p.m. on a cold and snowy night and lasted for nearly two hours. Severe winter weather did not prevent people from making their voices heard loud and clear.
Dozens of Palestinian flags were held high all along the road. Chants included, “End the siege on Gaza now,” “Who is the terrorist? Israel is the terrorist,” and “Free, free Palestine!” The demonstration was lead by young people from the Palestinian and Arab communities.
Party for Socialism and Liberation candidate for Illinois State Assembly, Heather Benno, spoke during the rally. “We stand with the people of Palestine and support the right of the Palestinian people to resist oppression and occupation. We will continue to struggle in the streets of the U.S. until Palestine, Iraq and the people of the Middle East are free from U.S. domination,” declared Benno. Speakers and chants were greeted enthusiastically by many of the passersby.
The demonstration in Chicago was part of national and worldwide demonstrations against the Israeli siege of Gaza. In the U.S. large emergency protests were also held in Washington D.C., San Francisco, Anaheim, Calif., New York City and Seattle.
The Chicago demonstration was initiated by the International Solidarity Movement. It was endorsed by Palestine Solidarity Group, Chicago Coalition Against War and Racism, American Muslims for Palestine, ANSWER Chicago and many others.
