About a hundred women gathered Thursday evening in Montreal to express their anger at the inaction of governments in demanding a ceasefire in Gaza while asking not to give in to violence.
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“We may be in pain [en voyant ce qui se passe à Gaza], we can cry. But what is happening there today is our responsibility. Humanity should be ashamed of remaining silent,” says Zahia El-Masri, of the Women’s Coalition for Palestine.
It was in the calm, at the foot of the steps of the Place des Arts esplanade, under a freezing wind, that a hundred people stood with a candle or a stuffed animal in their hands. It is to show their solidarity with the Palestinian people that they came, but also to demand action from the different levels of government.
“Do we really have to explain why we’re here? It is to denounce all these governments which say nothing and do not ask for a cease-fire while we are witnessing a genocide,” denounces Christine Dandenault, a Montrealer.
Feeling of Shame
For the latter, it is a feeling of shame that inhabits her when she sees that the federal and provincial governments remain silent. “It does not represent the values of our country or our province,” she says.
Ms. El-Masri agrees.
Zahia El-Masri, of the Women’s Coalition for Palestine
Photo Clara Loiseau
“We are witnessing the massacre of an entire population,” protests the woman whose family was expelled from Palestine in 1948.
Since the start of the conflict on October 7, nearly 10,000 people have been killed, according to data from the Hamas armed group which cannot be confirmed. Of this number, 4,000 children would have lost their lives.
Tribute
Photo Clara Loiseau
To pay tribute to them and so that they are not just statistics, the organizers of the vigil had the names of these children written on a white sheet.
“Can we look these children in the eyes and tell them that we did everything to save them? » asks Anne Latendresse, from the Alternatives organization.
Ellen Gabrielle, a Mohawk activist and artist from the Kanehsatàke Nation, also provided her support during a speech.
“We know only too well what the signs of genocide are,” she emphasizes.
Faced with the rise in anti-Semitic acts throughout the world, she called for people not to be carried away by anger.
“We must not give in to violence, we must find a way to communicate,” she asks.