In her 23 years of existence in this world, Saturday marked the first time that Salma Abdullah was surrounded by Palestinian flags.
He stood among a sea of nearly a thousand people dressed in red, green, white and black in the middle of Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, to mark the 75th anniversary of the Nakba, or catastrophe, that killed hundreds of thousands of people. There was mention of ethnic cleansing. Thousands of Palestinians at the hands of Zionist paramilitaries in 1948.
Between 1947 and 1949, Zionist forces occupied more than 78 percent of historic Palestine and drove at least 750,000 Palestinians from their lands and homes.
Seventy-five years later, hundreds of people in New York City, young and old, proudly wore the keffiyeh around their shoulders, wrapped around their heads, and tied around their necks.
They chanted “Free Palestine, free” and “From river to sea, Palestine will be free” and Abdullah, who had tears in his eyes, shouted the phrases with them all.
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“Living in upstate New York, I have never seen anything like this in person. I was always on social media,” he told Middle East Eye. “Last year, I promised to attend one of these rallies. And now here I am, right?
Abdullah’s grandmother was expelled from her home in Palestine in 1948. Although she is no longer alive, Abdullah said she would continue to fight for an independent Palestine like her grandmother.
In Bay Ridge, the heart of the Arab community, Nakba Day was celebrated. It was more than a protest, organizers insisted. Rather, it was a celebration of Palestinian resistance, life, culture and the ongoing struggle for Palestinian liberation.
“This is a community gathering to claim our power and show New York City that we stand with Palestine from river to sea, and we support Palestinian resistance and liberation by any means necessary,” our The organizer of a lifetime wrote about the event. In social media.
The event was sponsored by more than 20 organizations, including Samidoun, the Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network; Palestinian Youth Movement; American Muslims for Palestine; and the Black Alliance for Peace.
Freeing the holy land five
Many people chanted “Free the HLF 5”, referring to the Holy Land Five, a group of Palestinian-American men who were convicted of terrorism financing in a case that civil liberties groups say is that the disproportionate targeting of Muslim charities after 9/11 has been highlighted. , ,
Five people were arrested in 2004 on allegations that the Holy Land Foundation was a terrorist organization and was providing funding to Hamas, the Palestinian political movement that has been designated a terrorist group by the United States since 1995.
While the first trial resulted in a divided jury, the second trial resulted in longer prison sentences for each on a charge of “material support of terrorism”.
“I am holding a ‘Free the HLF 5’ sign because no one should be wrongfully imprisoned. Especially those who are fighting for a free Palestine,” Mohammad Yasin, a youth involved in the demonstration, told the MEE told. “We are all connected. We are all protesting. Their pain is our pain.”
‘About Time’ Nakba De Recognized
Nakba Day in America was not without controversy. Earlier this week, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy canceled an event at the Capitol building that was supposed to commemorate the Nakba, saying it was “the 75th anniversary of relations between the United States and Israel.” Will host a bipartisan discussion to honor.
The event was eventually moved to the Senate Hearing Room after Senator Bernie Sanders signed on as a sponsor of the event.
Speaking to the American right-wing publication The Washington Free Beacon, McCarthy said that “as long as I am a speaker, we will clearly and bipartisanly support Israel’s right to self-determination and self-defense.”
On May 15, the United Nations will observe Nakba Day for the first time. The United Nations Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP) will hold a “special high-level meeting” at which a keynote address will be delivered by Mahmoud Abbas, President of the State of Palestine.
The commemoration will also include a performance by Palestinian singer Sana Moussa and a musical composition on the Nakba titled “Bright Colors on a Dark Canvas” by Naseem Altrash.
“I think it is time for the United Nations to recognize Nakba Day. Every year we see more and more people and organizations recognizing our struggle,” Abdullah said. “Every year we get closer to a free Palestine and Getting closer.”
