PORTLAND, Ore. — Hundreds of people filled Terry Schrunk Plaza Saturday with signs and stories to support Palestinians after attacks intensified in their conflict with Israel.
On May 15, Nakba Day, supporters recognize the destruction of Palestinian villages after the fallout from the 1948 Palestine war.
“Palestinians are systemically systematically silenced on every single platform,” said Ramzy Farouki, the executive director of the Center for Study and Preservation of Palestine, which organized the well-attended rally.
Speakers addressed the gathering, telling stories passed down in their families.
One young girl told what happened to her grandfather and his family when he was a teenager in Palestine.
“The Israelis found out that they were leaving and bombed the truck to the point where my grandfather's hair turned white when he was fourteen from all the stress and he broke his kneecaps,” Sarah Alqirem said.
“I want to share his story so people learn and people know what we're going through," she added.
The Portland rally was one of several in major U.S. cities on Saturday supporting Palestinians and calling for an end to deadly Israeli airstrikes in Gaza.
The fighting between Palestine and Israel has intensified over the last month but the violence goes back decades.
The United Nations voted for Palestine to be split into separate Jewish and Arab states back in 1947. The plan was accepted by Jewish leaders but rejected by the Arabs.