Easton Rally Resolute on Ceasefire, Contra Easton Council

At 5:30 PM on Friday, November 10th, hundreds gathered in Easton in support of the Ceasefire Now Resolution for Palestine. The event, organized by Muslim Youth Lehigh Valley (MYLV), saw protesters march in front of Easton City Hall, carrying their signs, flags, and banners. The crowd included many local Muslims as well as allies from the community, including representatives from local universities and organizations like the Democratic Socialists of America. Together, as the sun began to set, they raised chants in solidarity with Palestine, just like countless other demonstrations in the US and around the world.

This Easton rally came on the heels of Wednesday's Easton City Council meeting on November 8th, where a crowded council hall saw the warmongering majority of city council refuse to vote on a new Ceasefire Now resolution. Councilperson Taiba Sultana had reintroduced an amended resolution after council removed her first ceasefire resolution from the agenda in the previous meeting. The new, stripped-down resolution took out much of the "controversial" language of the old one. Instead, it focused on the bare minimum: a condemnation of violence and a call for our elected officials in DC to immediately work toward a ceasefire. Regrettably, despite many eloquent speakers from the community, no one on council would second Sultana's call for a vote, meaning the resolution was once again shot down without a proper vote for the second meeting in a row.

Of course, the failure of this resolution surprises no one. At the start of the meeting, Mayor Sal Panto stated he would not support the simplified resolution, despite previously indicating he thought the last resolution was too complex and implying he would support a resolution that merely called for a ceasefire. He was joined by Councilpersons Roger Ruggles and Ken Brown who also stated they would not support the resolution at the start of the meeting.

Councilperson Ruggles was even given an extended period to speak at the start of the meeting. At the prior October 25th council meeting, Ruggles had stated that he had no knowledge of the Ceasefire Now proposal before Congress and therefore would not support the resolution. He was criticized for this ignorance of world events, which evidently hurt his feelings. Ruggles, emotionally distraught, spent several minutes of the November 8th council meeting desperately trying to demonstrate his knowledge of the world by talking about all the places he's traveled and worked abroad. This did little to explain why he hadn't done cursory research about an agenda item he had strong feelings about and knew would be discussed at the October 25th meeting.

While Ruggles' oversensitivity was exemplary, Panto and Brown were similarly indignant when they were criticized for their complicity in genocidal, mass murder.

In contrast, the rally in front of City Hall had a spirit of determination, unity, and moral clarity. Before the march began, participants took a break from their chanting and listened to several speakers. These included not only local members of the Muslim and Palestinian community, such as organizers An-Nisa Muqtadir and Raya Abdelaal, but also Mark Rosenzweig, a secular, Jewish Eastonian. Rosenzweig unequivocally condemned settler colonialism and the occupation of Palestine while criticizing the false belief that these positions are anti-Semitic. It is clear that Israel's killing spree in Gaza is not merely a Muslim or Arab issue but a human issue that concerns all of us.

Following the speeches, the masses took to the street. Marching and chanting, the multitude eventually made their way down Larry Holmes Drive to the famed boxer's statue, placing a Palestinian flag in its gloved fist. War continues in Palestine. Israel's grossly disproportionate military response and massacres go unabated, with Washington DC's full backing. However, on Friday night, the people of the Lehigh Valley indicated that they will not stop fighting for peace, an end to apartheid, and an end to colonialism in Palestine. Viva viva Palestina!

Rep. Wild, Sen. Fetterman, Sen. Casey and every other elected official had best take notice; we'll remember in November.