On Monday, hundreds of protesters took ferries to the Statue of Liberty, carrying banners calling for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war that they unfurled from the statue’s pedestal.
The protest, organized by Jewish Voice for Peace, was just one of a series of events taking place across the country almost daily in response to the conflict. Over the weekend, thousands marched in pro-Palestinian demonstrations in various cities as the death toll in Gaza continued to rise.
In New York, a coalition of Jewish groups held a vigil near Central Park to mark 30 days since Hamas’s attack and to show solidarity with Israel.
The protest at the Statue of Liberty started quietly and then the protesters began climbing the pedestal stairs while wearing T-shirts with the words “Jews Say Cease Fire Now.” Once assembled below the statue’s feet, they dropped banners from the edge of the stairs with slogans including “Palestinians should be free” and “The world is watching.”
Jay Saper, a spokesperson for Jewish Voice for Peace, said the group chose the location because they were “inspired by the lineage of many people who have made their calls for justice on this island.”
Last week, the group organized a protest at Grand Central Terminal and this protest was meant to “keep up the pressure.”
“We know that today the Israeli government is hailing bombs down on Gaza City and has cut off electricity from the rest of Gaza, plunging everyone into darkness,” said Elena Stein, a community organizer and director of organizing strategy for Jewish Voice for Peace. “And so our response is to come to this iconic American location that represents peace and liberty, as Jews, and other people of conscience, to say, ‘Not in our name. Let Gaza live.’”
The protesters eventually marched to the Liberty Island ferry landing, where they boarded a ferry back to Battery Park in Manhattan. Mx. Saper said that there had been no arrests.
