As evening descended on the final day of the legislative session, roughly 150 protestors gathered outside the Capitol building to demand that Connecticut divest from Israeli interests.
“Special session now! Dump Israeli bonds now!” chanted the crowd, demanding that the legislature hold a special session to withdraw Connecticut’s investments in Israeli bonds, as well as in Israeli companies.
Yazeed Hasan, who is Palestinian and a member of American Muslims for Palestine, the group that organized the rally, said the group decided Wednesday to gather after Israel rejected a cease-fire deal that Hamas had approved.
“Israel refuted it and said that they were going to continue their invasion of Rafah,” said Hasan. “We need to do whatever we can.”
For months, the Israeli military has been planning a military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where roughly 1.4 million Palestinians have sought shelter after being displaced. On Tuesday, Israeli troops took control of the Rafah border crossing, which has served as one of two critical entry points for getting food, medicine and supplies to Gazans.
The crowd outside the Capitol included residents of all ages and several families with children. Mohamed Basheer, a resident of Newington and Indian immigrant, attended with his wife and daughter.
“We came here for justice,” said Basheer, who said he became aware of the protest through an Instagram post.
Some attendees remembered past protest movements, including those organized against the Vietnam War and South African apartheid.
“Did we learn nothing about civil society?” said Phil Kleine, a Washington, D.C., resident who was in the state visiting his daughter. Kleine, who attended with his wife, daughter and granddaughter, added that he recognized similarities from his experience organizing protests against the Vietnam War. “I see more than enough to be outraged.”
“When we protested against South African apartheid, we actually got the state of Connecticut to divest,” said John Fussell, a West Hartford resident in the crowd.
Fussell said he believes that state legislators should also use their platforms to denounce Israel’s actions in Gaza. He noted that Rep. Maryam Khan, D-Windsor, wrote a letter to the Biden administration in April calling for a ceasefire, but only 17 additional state senators and representatives co-signed the letter.
“Every politician — whether they’re a local politician, state [politician] — they have a responsibility to speak out,” said Fussell, adding that he’s been disappointed by his state senator, Derek Slap, for not signing Rep. Khan’s letter.
In recent weeks, college campuses have erupted in pro-Palestinian protests. In Connecticut, students have set up encampments at several campuses, including the University of Connecticut, Trinity College, Wesleyan University and Yale University. Tensions at some schools have heightened, but others have maintained a fragile peace.
Hasan, the organizer with American Muslims for Palestine and a student at the University of Connecticut, said he wants people to understand that the protestors are trying to bring attention to the suffering of people in Gaza.
“With these protests, all we do is to try and bring voice and light to the narrative,” said Hasan. “We’re not assaulting anybody. We’re not slandering anybody. We’re just doing what we can.”
This story was originally published by the Connecticut Mirror.