As the Democratic National Convention begins, Palestinian supporters to gather in Sacramento

The Sacramento Regional Coalition for Palestinian Rights is holding a “Teach-in Against Genocide” at the California Democratic Party headquarters in Sacramento on Monday, in conjunction with the start of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

David Mandel, an organizer with Jewish Voices for Peace and a coordinator of the event, said it is intended to dispel “misinformation that is being disseminated” about Palestine supporters. He is also calling for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza.

“(We’re) trying to dispel a very common myth by explaining that anti-Zionism is not antisemitism,” Mandel said. “The state of Israel has an obligation to defend its people, but killing tens of thousands of people in Gaza is not defense, it’s a severe violation of international law, it’s a war crime.”

The demonstration is from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at 1830 9th St. outside the California Democratic Party headquarters. The CDP did not respond to calls for comment. The Democratic National Convention’s main programming begins at 3:30 p.m. PDT. Pro-Palestinan protests are planned during the four days of the convention in Chicago.

The U.S. is currently part of negotiations to bring about a ceasefire to end the 10 months of fighting, with talks scheduled this week. The war began after Oct. 7 when Hamas militants crossed the border and killed more than 1,200 people and abducting 250 hostages in Gaza. The Gaza Health Ministry said Israel’s retaliation has killed more than 40,000.

Protests have continued in the Sacramento region. In Woodland, for example, demonstrators gather outside the office of Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, every Tuesday to protest his support of continuing military aid to Israel.

He voted to support the bipartisan supplemental package that appropriated more that $95 billion in funding to protect national security priorities in Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan and provide humanitarian aid to Palestine on April 20.

“Israel is our strongest ally in the Middle East,” his statement said. “This supplemental package will help Israel defend itself and its people from terrorism like we saw on October 7 and the unprecedented drone and ballistic missile attack from Iran last week. The protection of civilian life is tantamount as the conflict in Israel and Gaza is creating a worsening humanitarian crisis.”

The supplemental package provided $9.2 billion in humanitarian aid, including for Palestinian civilians in Gaza. He said it was crucial to ensure that innocent civilians can receive food, water and other essential assistance.

“Additionally, I have called on the Biden Administration to ensure that Israel follows international law and takes steps to protect civilians and allow humanitarian aid into Gaza,” the congressman wrote.

Erica Ballinger, an organizer with Yolo For Palestinian Justice, said Thompson is not acting in accordance to the views of the people he represents.

“ He continues to respond that he is concerned about civilians, but he does absolutely nothing to actually back that up,” Ballinger said. “The letter we gave him... specifically says ‘Back up your words. If you’re concerned about the civilian impact, then here’s one thing you can do.’ So far, he’s refused to co-sponsor the emergency funding Restoration Act for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency.”

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency supports humanitarian aid to refugees in Gaza. However, after allegations workers with the agency may have been involved in the attack by Hamas, some nations including the U.S. have pulled their funding for the agency.

Thompson did not return calls for comment.

This story was originally published August 19, 2024 at 5:00 AM.