Hundreds in West Palm demand Gaza cease-fire, freedom for Palestine

WEST PALM BEACH — More than 500 protesters gathered Saturday afternoon in West Palm Beach to call for a cease-fire in Gaza and to end the killing of Palestinian civilians in the Israel-Hamas war.

The main chant of the Sunday afternoon on the lawn at Okeechobee Boulevard and Rosemary Avenue, however, has been a point of contention nationwide: "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free."

Last week, U.S. House lawmakers censured Palestinian-American Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., for posting videos associated with this slogan, which the censure said is a phrase that calls for the "destruction of the state of Israel." Yet protesters at the Sunday demonstration pointed to this slogan as a call for solidarity with Palestinian civilians affected by military campaigns in Gaza.

"We're here for all Palestinians from the river to the sea. We know every single human being is sacred and has immense value from Palestine, to Congo, to Sudan. We see you, we're here for you, and we'll never be free until you are free," said Tara Mahmoud, who attended the protest representing Students for Justice in Palestine at Florida International University in Miami, speaking to a crowd circling around her in the lawn.

Organizers, speaking in the center of the lawn, also condemned Palm Beach County, accusing leaders here of making a $160 million bond purchase from Israel that is "contributing to this humanitarian catastrophe."

"South Florida is funding genocide," said Nikki, a member of Jewish Voice for Peace of South Florida who declined to give her last name.

The rally was held to protest the more than 11,000 deaths since Israel's military campaign against the Hamas militant group, after Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing about 1,200 Israelis and taking 240 hostages. It was organized by groups including Students for Justice in Palestine, the Palestinian Right to Return Coalition, CAIR Florida and Jewish Voice for Peace of South Florida.

Emily Soto, a 28-year-old West Palm Beach resident, said that she wanted a cease-fire and an end to Israeli occupation. Soto, who held a "Long Live Palestine" sign, said that she attended the event because she was "alarmed that my country is funding the genocide of the Palestinian people."

"I'm vehemently against this, and no way is it OK with me that my money is going to this. And it's my duty as an American citizen to use my freedom of speech to gain attention for people who don't have freedom, which is the people of Palestine," Soto said.

Erik Rose wore a Palestinian flag on his back, and he said he attended because he believes the conflict in the Middle East is "wrong" and that he believes it's important to stand up against genocide.

"They [Israel] are just doing whatever they want, they're being reckless, killing innocent babies. You know what I'm saying: kids and families, trying to just wipe people off the face of the earth, and that ain't never been right," Rose said.

Deena Ibrahim, a 30-year-old Boynton Beach mother of two children, said that she's been protesting for Palestine since she was a kid and that she brought her children to the protest to teach them that "what's happening is not OK."

Ibrahim, who is Palestinian, said she believed these protests are important since it helps people understand the Palestinian struggle. "The end goal is always going to be a free Palestine. Right now, Israel's indiscriminately bombing Gaza. And it's disproportionate," Ibrahim said. "Cease-fire today, end the siege tomorrow, end the occupation."

Protest follows a week in which Israel-Hamas war stirred Florida passions

Sunday's events in Palm Beach County followed a week in which the escalating, brutal Israel-Hamas war raged through Florida communities, from college campuses to a U.S. district court to a city hall to school classrooms.

Gov. Ron DeSantis' call to deactivate the national Students for Justice in Palestine organization drew a federal lawsuit against the governor and state university from the chapter at the University of Florida. The legal action came as pro-Palestinian demonstrators disrupted a Florida State University Board of Trustees meeting and rallied on state grounds in front of the landmark original state Capitol building.

Two Democratic state representatives, Angie Nixon of Jacksonville and Anna Eskamani of Orlando, also attended the streetside event. "At this point, when it comes to the rise of both antisemitism and Islamophobia in the country and in the state, peace is the approach to help address it," Eskamani said.

"Cease-fire now, is the biggest and most clear message," said rally participant Ahmad Daraldik, a Palestinian who's part of the Florida Palestine Network, and who has previously filed allegations of an anti-Palestinian hostile environment at FSU. "Beyond that, we need to end the occupation and end the U.S. aid … and make sure there is a free, truly liberated Palestine."

Further south, the conflict impacted students at the University of Florida.

A graduate student at UF accused of damaging a Jewish fraternity sign was charged with two counts of misdemeanor vandalism. The Hillel chapter at the Gainesville-based university also canceled the Birthright Israel trip, a free 10-day guided trip to Israel for young Jewish adults once they turn 18, due to the violence in the Gaza Strip and beyond.

Exchange between two lawmakers reportedly resulted in death threats

Much of the friction across the state stemmed from expressions of support for Palestinian residents caught in the war between Israel and Hamas.

Nixon and a GOP colleague engaged in a flinty exchange that resulted in the Republican receiving death threats. The topic was Nixon's resolution calling for a cease-fire in the war between "Israel and occupied Palestine."

"We are at 10,000 dead Palestinians," Nixon said during the debate. "How many will be enough?"

State Rep. Michelle Salzman, R-Pensacola, replied: "All of them." Salzman subsequently said she received death threats.

In Tallahassee, GOP lawmakers filed bills in the state Senate and House aiming to ban and terminate state scholarships or tuition aid to college students who promote foreign terrorist organizations.

“The heinous terrorist attack on Oct. 7 has pulled back the curtain and exposed the rampant antisemitism happening on the campuses of colleges and universities throughout this country," said state Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, R-Spring Hill, sponsor of the bill.

Palm Beach County teacher lands in hot water while Gainesville city officials speak up

The proponent of a new law targeting antisemitism called on the Palm Beach County School District to suspend a teacher over an email in which the educator called on school officials to "publicly recognize the Palestinian community" in its communications about the war.

"Parents can only effectively engage in conversations with their children about the importance of respect, empathy, and the harmful consequences of prejudice if they understand that the Palestinian people in Gaza are being violently and indiscriminately massacred," the teacher wrote.

GOP state Rep. Mike Caruso of Delray Beach took issue with the educator's statements, which were sent to district Superintendent Mike Burke. "What bothers me, as well as constituent parents, is whether or not her speech has spilled over into the classroom," he wrote. "The brainwashing of our 5- and 6-year-olds with hate of any kind is disgusting and unlawful."

Nonetheless, the mayor of Gainesville, with the backing of the City Commission, is writing a letter to the Biden Administration calling for humanitarian treatment, peace and a cease-fire in Gaza.

“It's about human life,” Mayor Harvey Ward said. “This is about peace, and I don't have a problem with sending a letter saying, ‘Please stop shooting each other.'"

Information provided by the USA Today Florida Network and Palm Beach Post reporter Katherine Kokal was used in this story.

Stephany Matat is a politics reporter for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY-Florida network. Reach her at smatat@pbpost.com. Support local journalism: Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Hundreds attend pro-Palestine rally in West Palm