by
CJ Stone (words) and Jonathan Elliott (pictures)
I attended the rally for Palestine outside the Cathedral gates in the Buttermarket in Canterbury on the 29 October 2023. It was good to see so many of my friends there. It was pouring with rain when I first arrived, but as the day wore on, the sun came out. I would guess that there were about 200-250 people. They were there to show solidarity with the people of Gaza as they are being subjected to the vicious and unending onslaught by the Israeli armed forces. I refuse to call them the “Israeli Defence Force” as they are so obviously not involved in any defensive manoeuvrers as they bear down upon a trapped population in what can only be described as a concentration camp: killing men, women and children indiscriminately, attacking hospitals, churches and mosques, destroying civilian infrastructure, cutting off food, fuel, medicine and water, while pretending to go after Hamas.
There was a two minute silence at the end for all the victims, in Gaza, the West Bank and in Israel.
Here is Jonathan Elliott’s footage of the speeches.
The timings are as follows, (thanks to Julie Wassmer for this):
04.25 Hugh Lanning, former Labour Parliamentary Candidate for Canterbury
13.05. Dr Shahd Hammouri of Kent University
23.34. The Right Reverend Richard Llewellin, former suffragan Bishop of Dover and former Bishop of Lambeth
25. 00. Chris Nineham from the national Stop the War Coalition
37:40. Naomi Wimborne-Idrissi of Jewish Voice for Labour
I was particularly pleased to see Shahd Hammouri and Naomi Wimborne-Idrissi exchanging contact details at the end. A meeting of minds across the false divides, a Jordanian Palestinian, and a British Jew. Their two speeches were in marked contrast, but complimentary: Shahd’s being full of passion and outrage, Naomi’s more measured but still full of depth. Naomi’s last words were particularly moving:
“There’s been a shameful attempt to suggest that Muslims in this country care about Palestine because of their religion. No. They care, we all care, Jews care, Christians care, people of no faith care, because we are human beings.”
As long as this assault on innocent human beings continues, we will be on the streets. This is a turning point in history. The government of this country, the opposition, the media, are all on the same side, backing the genocide. If you want to know how genocides can take place, even in this current age, now is the time to pay attention. When Israeli politicians can refer to Palestinians as “inhuman animals”, when the Israeli Offence Force can say that their weaponry is being directed with the emphasis on “damage, not accuracy”, killing their own hostages rather than bringing themselves to negotiate, when Netanyahu can evoke Biblical images of a holy war, between the Sons of Light and the Sons of Darkness; when all this can take place while our media still try to pretend that there is some kind of parity between the two sides by talking about “Israel’s War with Hamas”, then it is up to us, the people, to show our opposition. The official opposition is complicit in this genocide. There is no opposition, except us, the people on the streets, both here in the UK, and around the world. We are the opposition.
With special thanks to Mary Sullivan for organising the event and to Jonathan Elliott for providing the images.
For further information about future actions, please go to South East Kent PSC on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/357496015590232/
Following is a collection of Jon’s photographs. Click on images to enlarge.
Dr Hammouri’s speech as shown on Jordanian TV:
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Thank you for showing up and for everything you do. With love to the good people who refuse to shut up and keep speaking for the people who cannot speak.. You are loved x
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