On the morning of January 13, roughly forty activists and community members braved the cold to demonstrate in Confederation Park in front of Peterborough City Hall to show their solidarity with Palestine and advocate for ceasefire efforts. 

After 100 days of the ongoing war between Hamas and Israel which has killed more than 23,000 Palestinians and 1,200 Israelis, attendees were keen on maintaining a consistent public presence in Peterborough to raise awareness of the international conflict. Participants were adamant on continuing to speak out on this issue, considering the recent public hearing in the International Court of Justice, where legal delegates from South Africa brought forth the case against Israel’s genocide on Palestinians in order to intervene. 

Peter Votsch, a long-time trade union organizer and member of the International Socialists (IS) of Peterborough, stated that he is adamant to break the silence on this issue. 

 “We want to continue to show our solidarity and be part of an international movement, putting pressure on Israel, but especially the US and Canada,” Votsch said, adding that the primary issue in Canada is their complacency despite the country’s peacekeeping image. 

Votsch hopes to form a coalition of local organisations to keep the issue in the local forefront through the online Ceasefire Now movement. This event has been one of many to continue for the foreseeable future, including weekly Monday night vigils in front of City Hall organised by the Peterborough Peace Council. 

“I think our presence shows that we're really determined to continue to put the issue forward in Peterborough and the people have seen us. People know that we're here and we're on the streets and we're not backing down on this issue,” Votsch said. 

After a brief thanks from Votsch, activists marched around the block of City Hall, chanting pro-Palestine slogans like “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!” while parading signs and flags from Confederation Park to McDonnel Street, then down to Water Street, then circled back via Murray Street to occupy the front steps of City Hall. 

While marching, Arthur spoke with Trent University student Chanel Bowen, who was disappointed with the lack of student presence at pro-Palestine marches and rallies. An International Development and Sociology student, Bowen has noticed a pattern of apathy in the student body, especially from the Trent Central Student Association. 

“Their statement on Palestine was really weak, considering how they have a responsibility to teach and educate students with their platform.” she said.

Reflecting on the historical role of students in anti-apartheid activism, Bowen expressed her ideas for potential activism she would love to see from Trent students and faculty, like teach-ins, similar to those held by International Development faculty this past fall. 

“The student has to worry about so much now, like working to sustain themselves,” Bowen said, noting she understands why some students may not have the time or energy to join in on protests. 

However, Bowen also noted that part of a university education is learning how to critically engage with one’s community and international issues.

“I think everyone has a responsibility to reflect on their role in what they are studying and how it connects,” she said.

As the demonstration continued to occupy the front steps of City Hall, community members read poems and told stories of the Palestinian plight in Gaza. One activist spoke about how a family she supports now lives in a tent, having had their home destroyed by occupying Israeli forces, and described the conditions of squalor they are being forced to live in.

Votsch once again spoke to express gratitude, but also to shed light on his experience as a Jewish retiree, seeing a “sea change” in the local Jewish community in their collective perception of Israel. 

“There are so many of us coming out of the radical tradition of trade unionism, of the struggle for socialism,” Vostch said. “We understand that we need to build something that is not an ethnostate.”

“I think that many in the trade union movement and various community organizations have now come around to understanding that it has to be a state that is Palestine, a free Palestine, not a Jewish state, not an ethnostate, but a state for all who live ther,.” Vostch concluded. 

Another supporter expressed a “profound debt of gratitude” to the legal allyship of South Africa. 

“It is telling for calling power to task — the Western world has not and will not call this what it is, and that is the genocide,” he said. 

Supporters continued speeches expressing solidarity, and frequently drew comparison from the Israeli colonization of Palestine to the overall settler colonial project of Canada. As the rally concluded, community member Helen McCarthy took up the mantle to support those “feeling despair about what is going on a world away” but reassured participants that “everybody's individual voice together contributes to change.” 

After the demonstration concluded, Arthur spoke one on one to McCarthy, and learned that the events in Gaza have spurred her first foray into activism in the community. .McCarthy explained that this was “definitely an issue that I feel like my eyes have been opened to a lot of things.”

“I think we all feel the guilt of not doing more, we think, and feeling like anything we do is so small and insignificant. But if everyone looks away, it only helps the oppressor,” McCarthy added. 

For more information on continued demonstrations, please contact Nogojiwanong for Palestine through their Instagram. For more on ceasefire efforts in Peterborough, please visit their Linktree regarding posters, petitions, and email campaigns. The Peterborough Peace Council will continue holding their Vigils for Palestine on Mondays from 3:30 to 4:30 pm in front of Peterborough City Hall at 500 George St. North until further notice. For more information, please contact the Peace Council through their Facebook or Instagram.