A Banner on Display at the Monument Square Rally This Afternoon That Lasted for One Hour.
Students Marching on Cngress Street to Monument Square Rally This Afternoon.
Ashley Hebert, of the Maine Party for Socialism and Liberation, Addressed Students This Afternoon at the Monument Squqre Rally.
About 400 students from local colleges heard eight speakers call for a cease-fire in Gaza at a rally in Monument Square this afternoon.
Unfazed by cold temperatures and overcast skies, the massive turnout was interspersed with tributes to the late Aaron Bushnell, a 25 year old member of the US Air Force who set himself on fire last month in front of the Israeli Embassy in the capitol – protesting Israeli’s war on Gaza..
One of the speakers was Ash Hebert, of the Maine Party for Socialism and Liberation. She told the crowd in part: “Resistance under occupation is a human right, cited in international law, and its imperative to support Palestinian resistance here in the belly of the beast.- where our leaders have authorized $158 billion federal dollars – mostly in arms shipments to the apartheid state while simultaneously hermorrhaging resources vital to the lifelines of our communities, including funding for education, healthcare, food security, you name it,” Hebert said. “We are called to bear winess to the remarkable and steadfast spirit of the Palestinian people as they reject colonialism, exercise the right to resist and to achieve self-determination.”
Paige, who is a Colonial Settlements major at Southern Maine Community College, said that the October 7 attack on Israel opened up a new world to her. “It is our duty to amplify these injustices. The term genocide is not an imagination, it is stark truth. We are paying for genocide. Let us stand against oppression.” Paige pointed out that over 30,000 Palestinians have now died in this war on Gaza.
Speaker Spencer said he met with Senator Angus King (I) yesterday. Senator King defended Israel’s War on Gaza.
It was noted around 2:00 pm that the number of voters who have agreed to participate in the write-in campaign has jumped from its initial 300 to 850 people. These are voters who will write in “cease-fire” over President Biden’s name on the March 5 primary ballot. Do these voters want Trump for President again?
Meanwhile news reports indicate that Israel has agreed to a six week cease-fire that Hamas has not yet agreed to. If enacted, this would permit the most vulnerable hostages to be released – including women, children and those who are injured. Some expect that Hamas will prolong the process looking for more and more concessions to agree to the terms.
The estimate of 400 attending the event was provided by one of the organizers of the event. This blogger does not have access to more sophisticated equipment to determine crowd size at such events. For more background information on the write-in camaign, please visit post herein dated March 1, 2024.