Activism

Thousands March in San Francisco to Support Palestine

The San Francisco march appeared as a vast sea of red, black, white, and green, as protesters waved Palestinian flags in those colors that had been provided by organizers.

Published

5 years ago

May 19, 2021

Christy Price

Protestors wave flags and signs in support of Palestine and against the Israeli occupation in San Francisco's Dolores Park on May 15. Photo by Zack Haber.

Protestors wave flags and signs in support of Palestine and against the Israeli occupation in San Francisco’s Dolores Park on May 15. Photo by Zack Haber.

Abdul (left) and Rami (center), stand at a protest in San Francisco’s Dolores Park to support Palestinians and against the Israeli occupation on May 15. Photo by Zack Haber.

On Saturday, thousands gathered in San Francisco’s Mission District at 2:00 p.m. to march in support of Palestine and against the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land.

“It gives me hope that people are waking up who didn’t know about this issue, including people who used to be Zionists, but just can’t find it defensible anymore,” said San Francisco resident Saif Haddad as he stood on a trash can gazing out into a densely packed marching crowd that covered more than four city blocks.

Haddad told The Oakland Post that his grandmother was forced from her homeland in Palestine in 1948. Since then, she has not been allowed to return. Haddad himself has never been able to visit the land where his ancestors once lived.

The march was organized in part in response to the state of Israel’s recent attacks on Palestine. On Monday following the march, Democracy Now! reported that over a two-week period ending on Sunday, Israeli attacks killed over 200 Palestinians including over 50 children, injured over 1,300 and left over 40,000 Palestinians homeless.

The march also responded to the history of Israeli occupation by occurring on Nakba Day, an annual day of commemoration for Palestinians marking the day after the British government formally declared the end of its mandate to recognize the state of Palestine, recognizing Israel in its place on May 14, 1948. Beginning in 1949, Palestinians have commemorated Nakba Day every May 15th with remembrance and protest.

“For my family, Nakba is about why we are here and not our homeland,” said Rami, a Palestinian teenager living in San Ramon who attended the march. Rami’s grandparents were originally displaced from their home in 1948, then bounced back and forth between Lebanon and different parts of Palestine before moving to the United States in the late 1960s.

Rami said that the march was one of the happiest things he had ever been a part of and that he’d not seen so much awareness for Palestine since he was born. He also noted broad national and international support. An article appearing in Buzz Feed News documented other pro-Palestine protests on May 15 in Paris, Tokyo, Madrid, Wash., D.C., Canada, Ireland, Mexico, and London, where organizers say about 100,000 supporters showed up. In Los Angeles, thousands showed up to a march to free Palestine in the Westwood neighborhood, where they stalled traffic.

The San Francisco march appeared as a vast sea of red, black, white, and green, as protesters waved Palestinian flags in those colors that had been provided by organizers. Before the march started, about 50 Palestinians and supporters painted a giant circular street mural on Valencia Street that Palestinian artist Chris Gazaleh had sketched out. It included symbols supporting Palestine such as women wearing keffiyeh scarves, red poppy, and the Palestinian flag with the words “we will return” in Arabic and English.

While many Palestinians came to the march, the crowd was diverse and supporters from many different backgrounds joined them. A young Palestinian child held a sign that read “SAVE THE CHILDREN OF PALESTINE” while a Jewish man from Berkeley in his late 60s carried a sign that read “SON OF HOLOCAUST SURVIVORS AGAINST ISRAEL’S RACIST OCCUPATION.” An indigenous person held a sign that read “NATIVES 4 PALESTINE.”

The march was loud. Drummers and organizers lead chants and the crowd yelled in response. A few were in Arabic, one of which, according to a Palestinian protestor, translated to “with our life, with our blood, we will sacrifice for Palestine.”

Most chants were in English, including one where protestors yelled “not another nickel, not another dime, no more money for Israel’s crimes.” This chant referred to the $3.8 billion that the United States has been sending to Israel every year since 2016, which has continued under President Joe Biden, who recently approved $735 million in weapons sales to Israel. One marcher held a sign which read “Stop US Aid to Apartheid Israel.”

After marching for about two miles in the Mission District, the protestors entered Dolores Park. There, members of the local anti-Zionist groups spoke.

Monadel Harzallah, a Palestinian member of the United States Palestinian Community Network, said “We have no illusions about the US administration here. It doesn’t matter if they disagree with racist Trump, they are following his footsteps when it comes to Israel.”

Continuing, Harzallah accused Biden of not having the courage to reverse any of Trump’s policies in relation to Israel.

Allison Tanner, a Baptist pastor from Oakland and a member of Friends of Sabeel North America, a Christian group seeking peace in Palestine through an end to the U.S.-supported Israeli occupation, said, “We know that Christian Zionists are wielding their power in Washington to help fund and provide political cover for Israel’s war crimes. We are here to decry the evils that they are doing in the name of Christianity and to commit ourselves to challenging Christian Zionism in all its ugly forms.”

Liza Mamedov, of the Jewish anti-Zionist activist group Jewish Voice for Peace, said “The state of Israel has always required, at every step, the forced displacement, racist oppression, fascist surveilling, occupation and apartheid; in one word: genocide against the Palestinian people. As colonized people living under brutalized occupation and siege, Palestinians are overwhelmingly justified in resisting their oppressors by any and all means necessary.”

Members of The Palestinian Youth Movement and Black Alliance for Peace also spoke. The protest started winding down around 6:00 p.m., when Palestinians and supporters left Dolores Park. Hours later though, small groups of people, most of whom appeared to be teenagers or in their 20s, could still be seen driving around the Mission District, honking horns and cheering as they waved Palestinian flags.

Christy Price

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Activism

The Ladies of Delta Sigma Theta Hold Day of Advocacy at the Capitol in Sacramento

A member of the “Divine Nine,” Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., was founded on Jan. 13, 1913, at Howard University in Washington, D.C. The organization was established by 22 women who sought to shift the group’s focus from social activities to public service, academic excellence, and social activism.

Published

1 day ago

May 17, 2026

Oakland Post

Sen. Laura Richardson (D-San Pedro) presents a Senate resolution to the Delta Theta Sigma Sorority Farwest Region at the State Capitol on May 4. Photo courtesy of the Senate Rules Committee.

By Antonio Ray Harvey, California Black Media

On May 4, members of the Farwest Region of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., convened at the California State Capitol for the organization’s 23rd annual Delta Days in Sacramento.

The two-day advocacy event brings together chapters from across California to engage directly in the legislative process, connect with lawmakers, and advocate for policies impacting Black communities.

Members of the sorority were honored on the Senate floor by Sen. Laura Richardson (D-San Pedro), who is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta.

Richardson welcomed the Farwest Region during the presentation of a Senate resolution recognizing outgoing Regional Director Kimberly Usher for her leadership and service.

“In addition to the Far West Region, we are led by a fearless leader, regional director Kimberly Usher. She has now served her full term of what’s allowed,” Richardson said. “We are going to be having our regional conference, but we wanted to give it to her here, officially recognizing her service.”

The resolution was co-authored by Richardson and fellow members of the California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC) and Delta Sigma Theta, Sen. Akilah Weber Pierson (D-San Diego) and Assemblymember Rhodesia Ransom (D-Stockton).

Usher has served in the leadership role since 2022.

“We are founded on sisterhood that is deeply rooted in scholarship, service, and social action,” said Weber Pierson, a member of the Gamma Alpha chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.

“Today, we continue a legacy of empowering communities and upholding the high cultural, intellectual, and moral standards established by our founders over a century ago,” she added.

Oakland Post

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Activism

Rep. Kamlager-Dove Introduces Bill to Protect Women in Custody After Reports Detailing Miscarriages and Neglect

The Pregnant Women in Custody Act would expand safeguards beyond the federal prison system to include women detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Office of Refugee Resettlement. The proposal follows reports of pregnant women being shackled, denied medical care and suffering miscarriages while in immigration detention.

Published

1 day ago

May 17, 2026

Oakland Post

iStock

By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

Congresswoman Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-CA-37) on May 7, reintroduced updated legislation aimed at strengthening protections and healthcare standards for pregnant and postpartum women held in federal custody, including in immigration detention facilities.

The Pregnant Women in Custody Act would expand safeguards beyond the federal prison system to include women detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Office of Refugee Resettlement. The proposal follows reports of pregnant women being shackled, denied medical care and suffering miscarriages while in immigration detention.

The legislation builds on a bipartisan version previously passed by the House during the 117th Congress. The updated bill includes new standards for healthcare access, mental health and substance use treatment, high-risk pregnancy care, family unity protections and increased federal oversight.

“Proper pregnancy care is a human right, regardless of your immigration or incarceration status,” Kamlager-Dove said in a statement. “It’s unacceptable that there are virtually no legal safeguards for pregnant women in federal custody.”

The bill would also limit the use of restraints and restrictive housing for pregnant women, improve data collection on maternal health in custody and require additional staff training and enforcement measures.

Supporters of the measure said the legislation is intended to address long-standing concerns about maternal healthcare and safety in detention settings, particularly for Black women and low-income women who are disproportionately impacted by incarceration and health disparities.

“Pregnant women in custody should never be subjected to dangerous and inhumane treatment that threatens their health, dignity, or the well-being of their babies,” said Patrice Willoughby, chief of policy and legislative affairs for the NAACP and a longtime public policy and government affairs strategist, in a statement.

A 2021 report estimated there are about 58,000 admissions of pregnant women into U.S. jails and prisons each year. Kamlager’s statement also cited a recent investigation by NBC News and Bloomberg Law that identified allegations of severe mistreatment or medical neglect involving at least 54 pregnant women or families in county jails between 2017 and 2024.

Federal policy under the Department of Homeland Security restricts the detention of pregnant, postpartum and nursing immigrants except in extreme cases. However, the agency reported that ICE deported 363 pregnant, postpartum or nursing women between January 2025 and February 2026, including 16 recorded miscarriages during that period.

The bill is cosponsored by several House Democrats and backed by organizations including the NAACP and the Vera Institute of Justice.

Oakland Post

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Activism

OPINION: The Fire of Oakland’s Justin Jones

Jones made headlines three years ago when he was one of a pair of Justins. Along with fellow State Rep. Justin Pearson (D-Memphis), he fought their removal from the state house in Tennessee and won reinstatement. Now, Pearson is running for Congress and Jones is still fighting for all of us.

Published

1 day ago

May 17, 2026

Oakland Post

Tennessee State Rep. Justin Jones (D-Nashville). File photo.

By Emil Amok Guillermo

You may know Tennessee State Rep. Justin Jones (D-Nashville).

He grew up in Oakland and the East Bay. His mother is Filipino. You can tell by his full name Justin Shea Bautista Jones.

His father is African American.

He is fighting for all of us.

Now, Pearson is running for Congress and Jones is still fighting for all of us.

The recent 6-3 Supreme Court decision barring the use of race in drawing congressional districts marks a major turning point in U.S. history.

The decision took away the Voting Rights Act’s power to assure minority voices were both heard and represented.

“What we’re seeing now is this new Jim Crow system in which Black and Brown communities are without voice in our political process,” he told Fredricka Whitfield on CNN last weekend.

“That’s a canary in the coal mine for the rest of the nation. If they come for one of us, they’re coming for all of us, and some of my message to America is that the South is the front line of democracy,” Jones said. “They are dismantling multi-racial democracy here in the South, in states like Tennessee and Louisiana. But they aren’t going to stop here.”

That’s why Jones said we have to start paying attention to the South, and start helping them fight back there,” he said.

“I want to be clear that this terror, this type of system they’re enacting, are the same systems my grandparents told me about who grew up in Tennessee, a system where people like me couldn’t even be in political office. That’s the time they’re bringing us back to and I’m not sounding the alarm to be alarmist. But I am sounding it because we’ve seen this before in our history.”

Jones talked about Reconstruction and about what happened between the end of the 1800s and the beginning of the 1960s, when there was no Black political representation.

It’s a rebellion to keep our democracy going forward, he said.

“Stand with us and help us fight back against this extremist power grab — this racist power grab against our vision of a multi-racial democracy,” Jones added.

“While there is a litigation strategy, it’s important to maintain what he called a “movement strategy” that leads to the largest voter mobilization and registration that has ever been seen in the South,” he encouraged.

In 2026.

“Tennessee is an oppressed state,” Jones said. “It’s a state where one in five Black voters can’t vote because of felony disenfranchisement. It is where you can use a gun permit to vote, but you can’t use a student ID card to vote.

That’s the Asian American African American voice of Justin Jones.

Read his words for inspiration.

About the Author

Emil Guillermo is a veteran journalist, commentator, and comic stage monologist. His new show “69, Emil Amok: Anchorman—The News Made Me Do It,” is at the San Diego Fringe at New Destiny/Lincoln Park, 4931 Logan Ave. Ste. 102. May 14-23, at various times. Get tickets here.