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Over 300K in DC for Historic Pro-Israel Rally; Release of Hostages Takes Priority

Edited by: Fern Sidman

In an unprecedented display of solidarity, over 300,000 people gathered in Washington for the March for Israel, marking the largest pro-Israel assembly in U.S. history, according to published reports.

 

Organized by various Jewish organizations, schools, synagogues, and community centers, attendees passionately called for the release of hostages held by the Hamas terrorists in Gaza as they assembled on the National Mall in the nation’s capital. They also reflected on the lives of the 1400 Israelis and others who were murdered in southern Israel communities on the morning of October 7^th by thousands of Hamas terrorists. They drew parallels to the Holocaust and declared “never again.”

Organizers told the Jewish News Syndicate that in addition to the 300,000 people were present at the march, another 250,000 tuned in to it via live stream broadcasts.

The event, graced by a video address from Israeli President Isaac Herzog at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, emphasized the urgent need for the return of the 239 hostages and underscored the collective commitment to ensuring the safety and pride of Jews worldwide. President Herzog stated, “Today we come together, as a family, one big mishpacha, to march for Israel. To march for the babies, the boys and girls, women and men viciously held hostage by Hamas.”

The rallying cry of “never again” resonated throughout the event, echoing the solemn vow made by Jews emerging from Auschwitz and symbolizing a steadfast determination to prevent the recurrence of such atrocities, as was reported by the Times of Israel. President Herzog linked this pledge to recent events, condemning the terrorist incursion into Israel and the tragic loss of lives as the largest massacre since the Holocaust.

The Biden administration’s anti-Semitism envoy, Deborah Lipstadt, addressed the crowd, reiterating the U.S. government’s unwavering stance against anti-Semitism. Lipstadt declared, “Today in America we give anti-Semitism no sanction, no foothold, no tolerance, not on campus, not in our schools, not in our neighborhoods, not in our streets or the streets of our cities. Not in our government. Nowhere. not now, not ever.”

Expressing concern over the dangerous chants heard during protests, Lipstadt emphasized that promoting peace and glorifying martyrs only fuels more hatred and violence. She stressed the corrosive impact of hate on the fabric of any society and denounced it as un-American and fundamentally wrong.

As Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) wrapped up her remarks on the National Mall, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) gestured behind her to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) that they would all clasp hands afterward, JNS reported.’

When Ernst had finished, the four held hands and lifted their arms up. “We stand with Israel,” they chanted over and over.

Throughout their remarks, they often joined in chants with attendees: “USA,” “Never Again,” “Let them go” and “Bring them home”—both referencing the hostages in Gaza—and Am Yisrael chai, “the People of Israel lives.”

When the world ignored anti-Semitism in the last century, it led to the “worst catastrophe in human history,” Schumer, the highest-ranking U.S. Jewish official, told the audience, the JNS report indicated.

“Let us not forget history,” he said. He noted that Israel was almost destroyed in 1967 and 1973. “We cannot, we must not let that happen again,” he said.

Even in its darkest days, the United States has always stood with Israel. “We will do everything to see that that never changes,” Schumer said, JNS reported. “When Hamas says ‘From the river to the sea,’ they mean that all of present-day Israel should be a Jew-free land.”

Schumer also called for the release of all of the hostages.

“We in America have your back. America feels your pain. We ache with you,” he said, addressing Israelis. “We stand with you. And we will not rest until you get all the assistance you need.”

“The Jewish people will live forever,” he added.

House Speaker Mike Johnson said that Israel’s survival unites U.S. leaders, and indeed all Americans, JNS reported. The House speaker said that the United States stands “unequivocally” with Israel.

He noted that he and other lawmakers, from both sides of the aisle, watched a screening earlier that day of the footage of the brutality of Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7. “It’s unspeakable,” Johnson said of the footage. “Most couldn’t sit through it.”

“The calls for a ceasefire are outrageous,” he said. JNS reported that he added that it is irresponsible for U.S. leaders to endorse a phrase like “From the river to the sea,” which calls for the eradication of Israel. (He said he thought many students who use the phrase don’t know what it really means.)

Also addressing the rally was Jewish actress Debra Messing, star of the sitcom, “Will and Grace.”

“I know you are in pain. I know you are afraid. I know you feel alone and abandoned by people you thought were your friends. I know you feel misunderstood and maligned,” she said, as was reported by the Jewish News Syndicate.  “I know because I do, too.”

Messing still urged hope, prompting cheers from the crowd: “Looking out at all of us today, also know that we are not alone because we have each other.”

JNS also reported that she described now as a time of testing and said that “a tsunami of hate has crashed down upon us and then a deafening silence. We see clearly now. We see naked, virulent Jew-hatred being disguised as a noble call for liberation. And we reject it.”

Referencing the death of 59-year-old pro-Israel rally-goer Paul Kessler in Los Angeles earlier this month, Messing asked: “What does Israel’s defense in response to a terrorist attack have to do with an elderly Jewish man in California killed for holding an Israeli flag?”

The JNS report indicated that Messing declared, “This is madness. This is terrorism. But we will win. We always have. We are strong, resilient and devoted. And we will not lose ourselves. We will worry for our global Jewish family and also hurt for the innocent Palestinians used as human shields by Hamas. We will work to eviscerate Hamas and also pray for a free and flourishing Gaza.”

Another Jewish performer who delivered remarks at the rally was veteran actress Tovah Feldshuh.  JNS reported that she is known for playing former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir and that she injected some humor and quick-thinking wit into an otherwise sobering speech.

“My Hebrew name is Tovah Feldshuh, and my Starbucks name is Tovah Feldshuh,” she began. “We stand here in the tens of thousands, and usually even if you have 10 Jews you have 10,000 opinions. But today, we stand in the thousands to say Am Yisrael chai, ‘the people of Israel live.’”

As was indicated in the JNS report, the actress referenced her short physical stature but said she stands “tall for the almost 200 innocent citizens, almost 200 Israeli children of Israel who are now orphaned, for the 240 innocent citizens of Israel still held in captivity by Hamas, for the kidnapped babies, and the Holocaust survivors abducted and hidden somewhere in Gaza.”

The actress told the attendees that “we are now engaged in a battle reaching beyond any Arab-Israeli conflict. We are engaged in a battle fighting for a civilized world. We stand here knowing that the halls of our universities should be havens of enlightenment and moral clarity, and not places where Jewish students, Jewish faculty or any minority feels outcast and afraid of being physically abused,” as was reported by JNS.org.

She warned college and university presidents that remaining silent would be complicity. She quoted Albert Einstein: “The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil but by those who watch them and do nothing.”

When Feldshuh mentioned she had the honor to play Meir, suddenly the Israeli and U.S. flags behind her blew over.

“Wow. I think Golda may be here today,” Feldshuh said, as cheers broke out, JNS reported. “As Prime Minister Golda Meir said, ‘Some people love you, and some people love you and show up.’ You show up and that makes all the difference.”

Montana Tucker, a singer, actress and dancer as well as a social media influencer also took the stage at the rally.  JNS reported that Tucker, whose collective TikTok and Instagram following numbers 12 million, wore an Israeli flag over her shoulders as she addressed the estimated crowd of 300,000.

“Both of my grandparents survived the Holocaust and growing up, I remember hearing them talk about what came right before,” Tucker said, according to the JNS report. “The lies that began to spread about Jewish people. Who we are. How we pray. What we represent.”

Some of her grandparents’ friends “nevertheless started to believe those lies, and when the Nazis came, these friends just let it happen,” Tucker said. “I wonder if they ever found peace afterwards, or if the rest of their lives were defined by the moment when they could have stood up but again they decided to stay silent. That’s why I chose to do the opposite and stand loud and proud.”

Among the New York elected officials who participated in the rally was rising star, Rep. Ritchie Torres, (who represents the Bronx),  and one of the most vocal pro-Israel voices in the U.S. Congress.

“I want to be crystal-clear: A ceasefire with a terrorist organization is not a peace agreement. It’s a death sentence for Israelis,” said Torres, in a speech that drew much applause, as was reported by JNS. “Everyone who wants Israel to cease to exist is calling for a ceasefire. Our answer to them is ‘No!’”

Torres noted that his district includes a large Jewish community but said he attended the rally “as an American to defend one of our greatest U.S. values, the U.S.-Israel relationship,” which is “an American value encoded in our national DNA.”

JNS also reported that the congressman said the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attacks were “a crime against the Jewish state, indeed against humanity, so barbaric it cannot be ignored.”

“It cannot be unpunished. Hamas must be brought to justice,” he said. “Israel has a right to defend itself, and America has a duty to stand with Israel in her struggle for survival and self-defense.”

Torres called on Israel to do to Hamas what the United States did to ISIS, al-Qaeda and the Nazis.

“No one expected the U.S. to enter a ceasefire with Japan after Pearl Harbor or Al-Qaeda or the Taliban when 3,000 were murdered on 9/11,” he said, according to the JNS report. “Those who insist that Israel should no longer defend itself are holding the Jewish state to a dangerous double standard that no other country would ever impose on itself.”

Torres noted that the junction of the 75th anniversary of the founding of the modern Israeli state and the 60th anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington, during which Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech.

Brooklyn Congressman Hakeem Jeffries said that the Jewish state will endure “always and forever,” as was reported by JNS.

“An attack on any of us is an attack on all of us,” he said.

“Where do we go from here?” Jeffries asked, the JNS report said. America must stand with Israel as it decisively defeats Hamas and it must make sure the “brutal terror regime can never rise again” and that every hostage comes home. Then there can be just and lasting peace, Jeffries said.

The emotional core of the rally was the heartfelt pleas from family members of the hostages. Rachel Goldberg, whose son Hersh Goldberg-Polin was among those captured, described the families’ agonizing 39 days of “slow-motion torment.” TOI reported that she questioned why the world was accepting the abduction of 240 human beings from almost 30 countries, held captive in Hamas’s labyrinth of tunnels underneath the Gaza Strip.

Goldberg highlighted the diversity of the hostages, representing various faiths and ages from 9 months to 87 years. She invoked the memory of a Christian who saved Jews during the Holocaust, challenging the world to reflect on its response.

Orna Neutra, mother of hostage Omer Neutra, painted a vivid picture of her son—a big guy, six foot two, with a perpetual smile, according to the TOI report. She conveyed a deep pain but spoke resolutely for her son, a dual U.S.-Israeli citizen, expressing love and passion for both of his homelands.

Alana Zeitchik, whose six cousins were taken from Kibbutz Nir Oz, decried the suffering of these families becoming a mere footnote for many in the West, as was indicated in the TOI report.  She emphasized that demanding the release of hostages is not a political or warlike act but a plea rooted in humanity.

The Times of Israel reported that progressive groups expressed discontent over the inclusion of evangelical Pastor John Hagee as a speaker, particularly as no other Jewish clergy members were featured on the speakers’ list.

The decision to invite Pastor Hagee raised eyebrows, highlighting the diverse perspectives within the pro-Israel community, according to the TOI. Critics questioned the representation of Jewish voices at the rally, emphasizing the need for inclusivity in such a significant event.

Despite the internal debate, the Department of Homeland Security designated the march as a “level 1” security event, a classification usually reserved for major events like the Super Bowl. This elevated status necessitated substantial law enforcement assistance from federal agencies, with police implementing security measures such as stationed snowplows as temporary roadblocks and deploying a military-style armored vehicle, as was reported by the TOI. Protesters’ bags were also subject to searches before entering the area.

The rally was not only a display of solidarity but also a message of gratitude to President Joe Biden for his staunch support of Israel in its conflict with Hamas. TOI reported that Mark Moore, a Christian pastor from Chicago, viewed Israel as “the only bastion of freedom” in the Middle East and expressed a desire for peace secured through victory, breaking the cycle of violence.

However, the event faced logistical challenges, as a delegation of 900 people organized by the Jewish Federation of Detroit arrived late due to bus drivers refusing to take them to a pro-Israel event, as was indicated in the TOI report. This incident underscored the complexity surrounding the rally, with differing opinions and challenges even within the supportive community.

In the aftermath of multiple pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel protests in the U.S. and a surge in anti-Semitism, the March for Israel provided a platform for diverse voices, reflecting the complexities of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the broader discourse surrounding it.

The rally concluded with heartfelt appeals for the immediate release of the hostages, a sentiment that echoed the broader demand of the march—an urgent call for justice, compassion, and a resolute stand against terrorism.

The event concluded with resounding chants of “Am Yisrael Chai” (The people of Israel live), emphasizing resilience and the enduring spirit of the Jewish people. The March for Israel stands not only as a historic gathering but also as a powerful testament to unity, determination, and the collective commitment to a peaceful and secure future for Israel and its people.