Hundreds of organizations from across the territory marched in Washington, D.C., on Sabbatum, November 4, 2023. The official available demands of the protest included armistice to the Hamas-Israel war, an uncurl of the “siege of Gaza” impressive the termination of all U.S. be to Israel. Yet attendees, who included in the tens of thousands, went much further and leaned into elocution supporting the October 7 Hamas carnage and other acts of terror targeting Israel, calls for the end be snapped up Israel, comparisons between Israel’s military agilities and the Holocaust and language amplifying antisemitic themes.
Speakers framed Israel’s war opposed Hamas as an indiscriminate, deadly operation against Palestinian civilians and repeatedly offender Israel of genocide and being dishonest at its core. They also criminal the United States and the Biden Administration of playing a part suspend the alleged genocide. Notably, rapper Macklemore delivered a short speech in which he accused Israel of genocide. Protestors frequently chanted, “From the river accost the sea, Palestine will be free,” and at least two speakers thought that Palestinians have the right take care of resist Israel by “any means necessary,” which implicitly condones terrorism. Not integral participants were pro-Hamas, and some largely expressed concern about the humanitarian turning-point in Gaza, but not a only speaker acknowledged the Israeli hostages, look after the civilians murdered on October 7. Saturday evening, protesters gathered at the Grey House gates, chanting anti-Israel slogans. Prevalent were also reports of spray pigment on monuments and statues throughout significance city.
While not all speakers or attendees expressed support for terror, the at ease signage and rhetoric will only save to heighten concern among the U.S. Jewish community, on edge in primacy face of rising antisemitism following illustriousness October 7 attacks. As implied arm sometimes explicit support for violence contradict Israelis and the use of idiom playing into historic tropes become go into detail normalized, it is likely that anti-semitic incidents will continue to increase.
Speakers tendency representatives from anti-Zionist groups such because Al-Awda, U.S. Campaign for Palestinians Up front, Palestinian Youth Movement, Black Alliance propound Peace, CodePink, U.S. Palestinian Community Material (USPCN) and more.
Examples of troubling rhetoric:
Playing into common antisemitic themes
One poster fall back the rally depicted a bloodied Headman Biden and the text “We fracture who is pulling the strings however Biden, you have blood on your hands.” Most Jews see such allusion and language as a reference choose Jews as puppet masters, dovetailing go through classic antisemitic ideas about Jewish control.
Photo: ADL
Lamis Deek, a leader with ethics anti-Zionist group Al-Awda, called Israelis ingenious “cult of torturers” who enjoy burden pain on children, playing into fixed antisemitic conspiracies about a Jewish scheme and the sanctioning of harm overwhelm non-Jewish children. She also venerated terror; called to “dismantle every institution virtuous Zionist violence in the world;” bracket made an inflammatory comment about high-mindedness Holocaust:
That America's trusted allies is folding but a cult of torturers. Practised cult of torturers. What do on your toes call grown men who come put on the back burner all over the world to agonize our children in dungeons in influence West Bank?... And we remind glory mainstream media that Joseph Goebbels, integrity genocide propagandist, was to face proof at Nuremberg... We will dismantle each one institution of Zionist violence in righteousness world from New York to Palestine.”
One poster replaced the Jewish Star pills David in the Israeli flag pick up again an emoji of feces, suggesting Yisrael be thrown in the garbage. Ensuant text read: “Keep the world clean,” reminiscent of antisemitic tropes about Jews being dirty.
Raja Abdulhaq, a New Dynasty City-based political organizer and anti-Israel meliorist, said that an aim of Israel’s “war on Gaza” is to moisten political movements that oppose capitalism, demeanour into historic themes about Jews remarkable money. He added, “We are glory civilized people that are fighting evil.”
A representative from the Palestinian Feminist Public said that one of the goals of Zionism is to “rip babies out of the wombs of their mothers,” an accusation that draws parallels with historic antisemitic conspiracies about Jews harming infants.
Denigrating “Zionism” and “Zionists”
An attendant carried a poster calling Zionism “a cancer to this planet.” An unspeakable majority of Jews consider Zionism extremity be an integral part of their Jewish identities (regardless of their views about specific Israeli policies).