As New York Sen. Chuck Schumer prepared for a final vote to pass an aid package that would provide $26 billion to Israel and billions more to Ukraine and Taiwan, traffic in his Brooklyn neighborhood At least 100 protesters appear to have been arrested after the blockade. On the second night of Passover, we call for an end to U.S. military aid to Israel.
Mr. Schumer, the Democratic majority leader, was in Washington, but protesters gathered Tuesday at Grand Army Plaza, a block from his home in Brooklyn. Grand Army Plaza has been a frequent site of protests since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war. As the sun set, hundreds of people gathered around a circular banner shaped like a seder plate. The banner included the words “Jews say we will stop arming Israel” along with images of food eaten during the Seder meal.
“This will not be a normal seder. These are not normal times,” Morgan Bashkis, a member of the progressive group Jewish Voice for Peace, told attendees.
After a series of speakers addressed the rally, the bulk of the crowd moved to the street between the north end of Prospect Park and the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Arch, blocking the flow of traffic and encouraging drivers to lean on their horns. did. A police officer monitoring the incident warned the demonstrators that they would be arrested if they did not move. As they remained at the scene, police officers armed with zip ties and handcuffs entered and began arresting them. It was unclear exactly how many people were arrested in the frenzy before the crowd dispersed. However, at least 100 demonstrators took part, some wearing reflective vests over black T-shirts that read “Jews cease fire now,” and in groups of two. It seems he was taken away.
The protest, organized by pro-Palestinian Jewish groups, was an unprecedented moment for Jews in New York City and beyond as college campuses and family tables feel the repercussions of the Israel-Hamas war. became a distinctly different Passover.
Stephanie Fox, executive director of Jewish Voice for Peace, said the protests were overdue for Passover to send a message to Schumer as the Senate moves toward final votes on aid to Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan. He said it was done at the right time. About $9 billion of the $95 billion package will go toward “global humanitarian assistance,” including for civilians in Gaza. (This package was later passed by a vote of 79-18.)
“All of our traditions encourage us to do everything we have to stop the historic atrocities that are being committed in our name and our tax dollars,” Fox said in an interview Monday. I'm forcing it,” he said.
Schumer, the highest-ranking Jewish official in the United States, recently called for an election to replace Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu once the war ends. His rebuke last month of the Jewish state leader, who also spoke in a speech about his love for the state of Israel and his fear of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, widens the rift between Israel and the United States. exposed. Analysts said it was its most important ally.
“Senator Schumer just recently spoke very harshly about Prime Minister Netanyahu on the Senate floor,” Beth Miller, political director of Jewish Voice for Peace, said at Tuesday's protest. “The fact that he does that on the one hand and rewards Prime Minister Netanyahu for promoting this military financing policy on the other doesn't mean he's serious about actually shifting U.S. policy towards leveraging change. It shows that there is no
One participant, Calvin Harrison, 29, a community organizer from Manhattan, said he came to Grand Army Plaza “because I'm Jewish and I was raised believing that Judaism is about justice.” .
“Passover is a celebration of liberation for the future,” he continued. “We cannot celebrate our liberation while oppressing Palestinians.”