Feud Between Palestine Supporters and Zionists Rages On in Victoria

255 Palestine supporters gathered at the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in Victoria, for the thirty-third weekend in a row, in hope of swaying the general public and hardcore Zionists alike in favour of their call for a ceasefire in Gaza.

The event started early with an unusually civil exchange between some of the protesters and several of their Zionist counterparts, near the fountain, which would strangely set the tone for the demonstration. An argument broke out, during which one Zionist in particular expressed his fixation on the 40 beheaded babies hoax, claimed he’d never seen pictures of dead Palestinian babies in Gaza because “they’re all fake,” and dismissed Palestinian casualties as collateral damage—and of course that it was “impossible to have a civil discussion” on the topic, this last point which I’m tempted to agree with.

Both of today’s speakers took objection to this. Of course they reiterated the litany of demands on Palestine supporters’ side, such as sanctions against Israel and a complete arms embargo, to which they added that Canada recognise the recent decision by the International Court of Justice ordering Israel to immediately halt its offensive on Rafah. But they couldn’t help addressing the Zionist troupe directly, if only by pointing out dialogue was effectively impossible, one in particular quoting Winston Churchill who once claimed: “You will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks.” The other refused to “condemn Hamas” as long as the other side refused to condemn Israel’s 76-year-long campaign of displacement and ethnic cleansing.

The counterprotesters attempted to instigate an incident throughout the march, but this time failed lamentably. Police liaison officers stuck very close to them and interposed themselves at the slightest provocation from their direction—although I’m afraid they missed that one moment on Government Street when one of them made a throat-slitting gesture toward the marchers. Nobody on this side took the bait at any point. It even looked to me like the cops were thoroughly fed up with the agitators.

Instead the Zionists were made to witness overwhelmingly supportive reception from bystanders, many even joining the march or offering to wave the Palestinian flag. In fact, I witnessed only one minor hostile incident near the end, from yet another angry old white man shouting “Let Israel live!” in a confused state only to be intercepted by a police liaison officer teaching him protest etiquette.

Morale of the story? Let rabid pack animals bark. Let them make fools of themselves talking to your camera. Let them feel foolish while the public showers the marchers with praise. Eventually they’ll give up and go home. Or if they truly enjoy the humiliation after all, let them have it with a smirk on your face.