Skip to content Skip to footer

Jewish Voice for Peace Takes Over Statue of Liberty in Protest for Ceasefire

“As long as the people of Gaza are screaming, we need to yell louder,” artist and activist Nan Goldin said at the event.

Hundreds of Jewish activists and their allies staged a large-scale demonstration at the Statue of Liberty on Monday afternoon, demanding that U.S. leaders pressure the Israeli government to agree to an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

According to Jewish Voice for Peace, an anti-Zionist group that organized the action, around 500 protesters took part in the demonstration. Activists dressed uniformly in black gathered on the Statue of Liberty’s pedestal shortly before 1 p.m., dropping enormous banners that read “The Whole World is Watching” and “Never Again for Anyone.”

The protest lasted around 20 minutes. Demonstrators continued chanting and demanding an Israeli ceasefire on the ferry back to the mainland.

“Our grief is being used to justify genocidal violence against the people of Gaza. It has to stop,” IfNotNow, a movement of American Jews organizing in solidarity with Palestine, said on social media. “10,000 dead. We NEED a #CeasefireNOW.”

“We came to the Statue of Liberty today because we are inspired by the words of our Jewish ancestor, Emma Lazarus, that are etched into the monument,” said Jay Saper, a JVP organizer. “Those words compel us to take action to support the Palestinians of Gaza yearning to be free. And we will continue to take action until we bring about a cease-fire and until Palestinians are free.”

Jewish Voice for Peace protesters call for a ceasefire in Gaza outside the Statue of Liberty.

“As long as the people of Gaza are screaming, we need to yell louder, no matter who attempts to silence us,” artist Nan Goldin, who took part in the demonstration, said in a press release from JVP.

“This is one of the greatest symbols of New York City and our supposed commitments to universal values of liberty and freedom and respite,” said New York Assembly member Zohran Mamdani, who took part in the protest. “And yet what we’ve seen is our country allowing for a genocide to take place.”

The Statue of Liberty demonstration is the latest high-profile protest led or co-led by JVP. In mid-October, the organization led demonstrations at the U.S. Capitol building grounds and at the White House, blocking entrances and disrupting business as usual at both locations to demand an Israeli ceasefire in Gaza. The group also recently shut down train stations in Philadelphia and New York City to demand an end to the genocide.

Earlier this month, a Jewish rabbi affiliated with the group interrupted a Biden campaign event, urging the president to pressure the Israeli government to end the genocidal campaign that has killed at least 10,000 Palestinians in Gaza so far.

“Mr. President, if you care about Jewish people then, as a Rabbi, I need you to call for a ceasefire now in Gaza,” Rabbi Jessica Rosenberg said at that event in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Jewish Voice for Peace protesters call for a ceasefire in Gaza outside the Statue of Liberty.
Jewish Voice for Peace protesters call for a ceasefire in Gaza outside the Statue of Liberty.
Jewish Voice for Peace protesters call for a ceasefire in Gaza outside the Statue of Liberty.
Jewish Voice for Peace protesters call for a ceasefire in Gaza outside the Statue of Liberty.
Jewish Voice for Peace protesters call for a ceasefire in Gaza outside the Statue of Liberty.
We’re not backing down in the face of Trump’s threats.

As Donald Trump is inaugurated a second time, independent media organizations are faced with urgent mandates: Tell the truth more loudly than ever before. Do that work even as our standard modes of distribution (such as social media platforms) are being manipulated and curtailed by forces of fascist repression and ruthless capitalism. Do that work even as journalism and journalists face targeted attacks, including from the government itself. And do that work in community, never forgetting that we’re not shouting into a faceless void – we’re reaching out to real people amid a life-threatening political climate.

Our task is formidable, and it requires us to ground ourselves in our principles, remind ourselves of our utility, dig in and commit.

As a dizzying number of corporate news organizations – either through need or greed – rush to implement new ways to further monetize their content, and others acquiesce to Trump’s wishes, now is a time for movement media-makers to double down on community-first models.

At Truthout, we are reaffirming our commitments on this front: We won’t run ads or have a paywall because we believe that everyone should have access to information, and that access should exist without barriers and free of distractions from craven corporate interests. We recognize the implications for democracy when information-seekers click a link only to find the article trapped behind a paywall or buried on a page with dozens of invasive ads. The laws of capitalism dictate an unending increase in monetization, and much of the media simply follows those laws. Truthout and many of our peers are dedicating ourselves to following other paths – a commitment which feels vital in a moment when corporations are evermore overtly embedded in government.

Over 80 percent of Truthout‘s funding comes from small individual donations from our community of readers, and the remaining 20 percent comes from a handful of social justice-oriented foundations. Over a third of our total budget is supported by recurring monthly donors, many of whom give because they want to help us keep Truthout barrier-free for everyone.

You can help by giving today. Whether you can make a small monthly donation or a larger gift, Truthout only works with your support.