New Orleans emergency rally tells President Trump: “Gaza is not for sale!”

New Orleans, LA – On Saturday, February 15, dozens of community members held an emergency rally in front of the Federal Building downtown to protest against Trump’s plans to ethnically cleanse the Gaza Strip.

After Trump’s demands that Palestinians relocate to the neighboring countries of Egypt and Jordan, organizations joined together demanding that the U.S. respect Palestinian sovereignty.

Trump has claimed that he has the right to take Gazan land “under U.S. authority” for real estate development, but the local pro-Palestine movement took the opportunity to remind New Orleanians that “Gaza is not for sale!” as stated by Hakm Murad, an organizer with the Palestinian Youth Movement.

“We are the land, we are rooted in the land, and we are not leaving. That is our message. No calls for ethnic cleansing will be heard here,” Murad continued as folks gathered with signs reading “Resistance until victory!” and “Two heads, same snake,” depicting the U.S and Israeli flags twisted together.

“If Trump and Netanyahu want to displace 2 million people from their rightful homes in Gaza, they will not only have to get through the heroic Palestinian resistance, they will also have to get through 7 billion of us!” said an organizer with the Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

“The boycott, divest, and sanction movement’s importance is clearer than ever at this very instant. The reality is this: U.S. imperialism, and the bottom line of the few, is what drives the foreign relations of this country” said Zach Dowling, an organizer with New Orleans Stop Helping Israel’s Ports (NOSHIP).

“As much as they have tried to say that Israeli violence is just ‘self-defense’ – this has never been true. These decades of occupation have only ever been about imperialism, about taking more land and more power with no regard to anyone’s humanity, anyone’s right to freedom and self-determination,” said Ariel Moyal with the Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP).

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said he and Trump have a “common strategy” for Gaza, as he echoed Trump’s comments, threatening to “let hell break out” if the Palestinian resistance does not release Israeli prisoners held in the Strip. However, rally-goers emphasized which party to the ceasefire agreement has failed to uphold their end of the bargain. “It should come as no surprise to anyone that Israel, the same genocidal state that has broken every international law over the past year, has repeatedly violated the first phase of the current ceasefire agreement,” said Dowling.

The rally, held by Palestinian Youth Movement, NOSHIP, JVP, Freedom Road Socialist Organization, New Orleans Healthcare Workers for Palestine, Together United Students for a Democratic Society and the Party for Socialism and Liberation lasted about two hours. Cars driving down the busy downtown New Orleans streets honked at the waving Palestinian flags in support of the message. These organizations are part of the newly formed New Orleans for Palestine Coalition, which signaled its determination to mobilize the New Orleans community against any future illegal attacks against Palestinians and their lands.

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