76 years of Israeli existence, 76 years of Palestinian resistance

Tuesday 14 May. A crowd dominated by shades of blue and white filled the space on Place du Canada in downtown Montreal. A few streets away, you can hear the festive music that comes from the stage and from the speakers of the celebration of 76 anniversary of Israel's independence.

While some celebrate, others grieve. On the other side of René-Lévesque Boulevard, in Dorchester Square, demonstrators organized a counter-demonstration. While Israel's independence for many means the freedom and emancipation of a community that has the full right to exist, it reminds others of the sad Nakba, or “disaster” in Arabic — the exodus in which hundreds of thousands of Palestinians had to leave their native land and live in exile.

At the center of these two realities, Montreal reacts. Police officers are deployed on site and establish a security perimeter on each side of the boulevard, thus ensuring that peace is maintained between the two gatherings. But who are these people who travel, despite the rain and the bad weather, to celebrate Israel or to commemorate the Nakba? La Converse went to the scene to try to understand what is driving these Montrealers to mobilize, some for the Israelis, others for the Palestinians.

“We are not only pro-Israel, we are Israel! ”

“Today, we celebrate Israel's victory against the British Empire, when we liberated our ancestral lands,” shouts Montreal activist Ysabella Hazan in front of a fiery crowd. “We are not only pro-Israel, we are Israel! ” she adds in a firm voice.

On the stage in the middle, hundreds of people cheer and sing. Despite the rain, everyone gathered to hear speeches by Ysabella Hazan and Jeremy Levi, the mayor of Hampstead, on Israeli solidarity.

In a tense Montreal, especially in the last few weeks when pro-Palestinian camps have been erected on the grounds of some of the city's universities, many people there say how important it is for them to attend the celebration. “Jews have been afraid to go out for six months,” says Josh, a young man taking part in the celebrations. “Students are afraid to go to school for six months. We are afraid to go downtown, to go to class, to do activities... So today, we show that we are there and that we are proud to be Jewish,” he adds.

Julien, another Jewish student, went to the scene to celebrate his heritage. He feels that the atmosphere at his university is tense. “I have heard a lot of stories and I see a lot of things. I see labels everywhere. It's very intimidating,” he confides, worried.

Despite everything, he remains optimistic: “You have to stay proud, you have to remain courageous. If you believe in Israel, you should not give up and hide.”

‍

Distinguishing Judaism and Zionism

At the same time, on the other side of René-Lévesque Boulevard, the atmosphere seems darker. This is not only due to the more numerous trees in Dorchester Square overlooking the square, but also to the sadder, more austere faces of the people.

The crowd is smaller, but the message is heavy. The slogans “Free Palestine” and “Yes to Judaism, No to Zionism” are heard, chanted in megaphones by activists.

On the front line, Rabbi Dovid Feldman proudly raises his sign, which shows an Israeli flag crossed out with a bright red line. He is accompanied by three of his colleagues, all members of the organization Jews United Against Zionism.

“We are here out of sadness” — these were the first words spoken by Rabbi Feldman, spokesperson for his organization. He tells us that he is originally from New York and that he came especially to Montreal to commemorate the Nakba and denounce the situation in Gaza.

Outraged by the Israeli celebration, which is taking place just a few dozen meters away from him, the New Yorker said he was “troubled and disturbed by the event opposite.” He explains: “There is nothing to celebrate. It is sad. When we see a genocide that has been going on for seven months in Gaza and where tens of thousands of innocent men, women and children are being murdered en masse, there is nothing to celebrate,” he declares in one breath.

In the same vein, he adds that “this is not only a violation of international law, but also a violation of Judaism.” The religious leader also believes that “condemning these crimes is not antisemitic, as one might sometimes think. It is a just cause, whoever the perpetrators are! ”

‍

Commemorating 1948

Wednesday 15 May. In the wake of the celebrations surrounding Israel's independence, hundreds of demonstrators gathered again in Dorchester Square, this time to commemorate the Nakba, the territorial dispossession of non-Jewish Palestinians in 1948.

As the crowd gathered before starting a journey through the streets of the metropolis, a spokesperson for the organization of the march exclaimed: “The Nakba will be renamed “Palestinian Resistance Day”! ”

Among the demonstrators was Yara, a student of Palestinian origin. Today, she feels “overwhelmed.” Surrounded by the noise and following the march, she tells us that her grandparents were expelled from Palestine in 1948. “My mother is originally from Gaza. In fact, I had family there. Today, some of them, like my aunt and my cousins, have taken refuge in Egypt,” she reports.

When she was younger, she was surrounded by friends who vacationed in their home country during summer vacation. “Everyone was eager to go back to France or Lebanon, for example, to spend time with their family. I was always the only one who had nowhere to go. It was very frustrating,” she recalls.

Accompanied by her friend, Yara recounts the damage that the conflicts between Arab countries and Israel have caused. Today, she sees the liberation movement as an ongoing process. “It's an ongoing battle. And this battle must continue until Palestine is free,” she said.

Ihmayed Ali knows the Palestinian resistance well. He is taking part in the demonstration with his sister and some of his family.

“I am here because I am a Palestinian witness to the disaster,” he said. My family was expelled from Palestine in 1948. She fled north and then to Lebanon, before living in a refugee camp, where I was born.”

When Ihmayedl was a child, he and his family did not have access to many resources as refugees. “I remember we all lived in one room with no electricity. We had no kitchen or bathroom, nothing. There was no support, no help, except from UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East), which provided us with basic necessities, such as food and medicine,” he recalls.

The father of the family chose to immigrate to Canada to give his children a better education. He says that his children have more opportunities here, but he still wants to be able to return to his homeland one day. “We are here today to tell everyone that we are refugees and that we have the right to return to our country,” he said. The latter refers to United Nations Resolution 194, which allows all refugees to return to live in their country of origin.

However, Ihmayed says he is extremely grateful for the solidarity with Palestinians that he has observed over the years in Quebec. “I like Quebec, because Quebecers support us much more than one might imagine. Every day, they are in the streets protesting for Palestinian rights. I hope to return to Palestine one day and to be able to receive all these people in my home in the same way that I was received here”, he finishes smiling.

As the demonstrators are walking down René-Lévesque Boulevard, members of Lawyers for Palestine, a collective of lawyers supporting the Palestinian cause, hold a banner showing the colors of the Palestinian flag. Dressed in their black gowns, they take up the cries of the crowd with heart.

One of them is clear: “International law says it in black and white: Israel is guilty of an illegal occupation of Palestinian land,” he declares. The lawyer, who did not give his first name during this exchange, believes that the “fight for liberation must continue”.

“If we follow the principle that while some are oppressed, all are oppressed, then we will never achieve peace in a world where imperialism and colonialism exist,” he explains.

On Crescent Street, where the march heads, the terraces of restaurants and businesses are full of curious people who pay attention to the crowds that arrive. The leaders of the demonstration, armed with megaphones, shout loud and clear to everyone: “The taxes you pay on your meals and pints are financing a genocide! ”