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Demonstrators
Support Palestine Outside Sharon's ADL Speech
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Demonstrators
protest Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's presence in the
U.S.
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By
Ayesha Ahmad, IOL Washington Correspondent
WASHINGTON,
May 8 (IslamOnline) - With drumbeats, fluttering Palestinian flags and
cries of "Free, free Palestine!" protestors gave Israeli
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon a hearty "un"-welcome outside
the Omni Shoreham hotel in Washington Monday night, May 6, where he
addressed the annual meeting of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).
Organized
by the Committee in Solidarity with the People of Palestine (CISPP), a
coalition of groups that demand an end to Israeli occupation of
Palestinian lands, demonstrators met first at the White House, forming
a circling picket line with banners and chants.
"We
are protesting a war criminal," said Emad Fraitekh, Internet
director for the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, calling it
"a shame" that Sharon was "coming here to get
support… for his war crimes. He is coming here to take the blessing
of the U.S. government."
They
moved on to the Omni Shoreham in time for Sharon's 7:30 pm ADL
address, and U.S. park police kept the more than 200 protestors on the
sidewalk across the street behind yellow police tape.
CISPP
organizer Mali Jimenez called the protest "promising",
especially in light of the continuation of protests after the April 20
rallies, which brought more than 75,000 people from around the country
to express solidarity with the Palestinian people, among other issues.
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Various
Americans protest across the street from Sharon's speech
venue.
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"More
Americans are becoming more educated" about the Palestinians'
situation, Jimenez told IslamOnline.
She
said this demonstration had been organized "to protest U.S. aid
to Israel and U.S. support of the occupation." CISPP wanted to
call "for Sharon to be tried for the war crimes that were
committed in the Jenin refugee camp," she added, saying that they
were also protesting the dismantling of the U.N. fact-finding team for
Jenin.
During
his address Monday night, Sharon told the audience he was calling for
a restructuring of the Palestinian Authority and again insisted on an
immediate cessation of violence on the part of the Palestinians,
according to an article in U.S. daily newspaper, the Washington Post,
Tuesday.
Protestors
across the street, however, insisted that Sharon was the main
architect of violence in the Middle East, with their shouts of
"Sharon and Hitler are the same, the only difference is the
name!" and "Bush, Sharon, what do you say? How many kids
have you killed today?"
One
of the demonstrators, Michelle Bollinger, referred to a quote from
Martin Luther King, Jr., that "injustice anywhere is a threat to
justice everywhere."
Bollinger,
a high school teacher in Washington and a member of the International
Socialist Organization, which is part of the CISPP coalition, told
IslamOnline that it was natural for her organization to stand with the
Palestinians.
"[It
is the] concept of solidarity with a group that's clearly oppressed in
every aspect," not only the recent violence but the occupation
itself, she said. "If socialism is anything, it's against that
kind of injustice."
She
added that socialists stand "against U.S. imperialism,"
which she said was at the heart of the conflict because "U.S.
policy armed Israel to the teeth."
Another
demonstrator, Ismail Kamal, echoed the concern about U.S.
responsibility.
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Demonstrators
marching in front of White House prior to Sharon speech at
hotel.
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"As
Americans… the most important thing is that we disagree with the
foreign policy of this country towards Israel," he said. "We
do not want our money being sent as military aid… to Israel."
Kamal,
a member of the Washington area Muslim community who has been active
in pro-Palestinian protests in Washington - including the April 20
rallies - said that these protests were the last of the
"anti-colonial movement" of the 1960s and '70s and were part
of a "phenomenon" of worldwide demonstrations in solidarity
with Palestinians.
"Until
Israeli colonialism… is ended, there will never be peace in the
Middle East."
In
light of their concerns about the deaths of Palestinian civilians and
about what they see as an attempt to cover up war crimes in Jenin,
perhaps one particular slogan chanted by the crowd summed up their
message best: "You can kill, you can lie, Palestine will never
die!"
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