A group of Petalumans will be gathering every Saturday afternoon “indefinitely” in downtown Petaluma to call for a cease-fire in Gaza and to honor those whose lives have already been lost, according to event organizers.
“One cannot underestimate the suffering of the Palestinian people. Nobody wants to see Israeli civilians attacked either,” said organizer Luigi P. of Petaluma, who is of Palestinian descent. (He declined to give his last name for this story out of fear of retaliation against him and his family.)
Fellow Petalumans George Beeler and Kyle Emerson have also been central to organizing these gatherings, which began Oct. 21.
“For me, taking action is the antidote to despair. I can’t go on without doing something,” Beeler said.
Their actions are in response to the violence between Israelis and Palestinians, rekindled last month after the Hamas militants controlling Gaza carried out a surprise attack on Israeli civilians Oct. 7, killing over 1,400 people. Israel reacted by launching a war that has killed over 8,300 people and left tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians trapped in war-torn Gaza with little food, water or other necessities.
The current violence is part of a complex history that many trace back to geopolitical changes in the Middle East following World War II.
“I view ongoing events as a continuation of the ethnic cleansing of Palestine which forced my mother’s family to flee in fear of their safety in 1947,” Luigi said. His family relocated to Beirut, Lebanon, where he was born and where many Palestinians resettled.
What began late last month as a downtown vigil to honor those killed has now grown to include calls for a cease-fire in Gaza. About 30 participants of all ages, faiths and backgrounds have been gathering on Saturdays at 2 p.m. at Putnam Plaza for a “healthy, prayerful outlet of grief” before walking to Walnut Park, chanting calls for a cease-fire.
Luigi said he chose to organize the gatherings after attending a similar event held on Sundays in Santa Rosa to bring attention to the ongoing conflict.
As a way to show solidarity and call for an end to what they consider an ongoing genocide, attendees of the Petaluma events have been writing “Cease Fire Now” on their forearms, Luigi said.
But their reason for doing that is also deeply, tragically symbolic.
“The grim reality in Gaza is that people are writing their names on their forearms, including kids, in hopes that if they are killed … their remains can be identified and returned to their relatives,” Luigi said.
“It has resonated with people in the community. I perceive a sense of relief in people as they see others gathered in support of innocent civilians and calling for a bilateral cease-fire,” Luigi said.
He said he hopes the events will encourage people to take action, contact their elected officials and call for “a more equitable stance” on the issue.
Argus-Courier staff photographer Crissy Pascual contributed to this report.
You can reach Staff Writer Jennifer Sawhney at 707-521-5346 or jennifer.sawhney@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @sawhney_media.
