November 15, 2023
On Tuesday, an astounding 290,000-plus people descended upon the National Mall in Washington, D.C., to show their solidarity with Israel, demand the release of hostages held by the Iran-backed terror group Hamas, and call out surging antisemitism. It was the largest pro-Israel gathering in American history.
Equivalent to about 4% of the American Jewish population, the huge crowd reminded many of the quarter million who attended the 1987 rally in the National Mall on behalf of Soviet Jewry. An additional 250,000 participated virtually on Tuesday via livestream.
But it’s not just the numbers, it’s the moments that matter. The following five poignant moments from the historic March for Israel will be forever etched in our hearts and minds as pro-Israel Americans from across the country showed their unwavering support for the Jewish state in its darkest hour.
Students
While the war rages in Israel, the safety of Jewish students on college campuses has become a top concern as students and professors spread antisemitism and support for Hamas’ atrocities. U.S. Presidents of notable universities have declined or hesitated to condemn Hamas terrorism, while the antisemitic agenda of purportedly “pro-Palestinian” student groups has been clearer than ever.
Yet amid the widespread harassment and intimidation of Jewish and pro-Israel students, Sabrina Soffer of George Washington University declared, “We shall not tremble in fear. Our Stars of David will shine on our chests and in our hearts.”
Columbia University student Noa Fay — a Black and Native American Jewish woman — similarly projected strength and defiance in the face of today’s antisemitic threats.
“I will continue to shout,” said Fay, who described how more than 100 professors at Columbia have advocated for the destruction of Israel on her campus. “We are the Jews of the Diaspora. This is how we fight. We fight loudly and we fight peacefully. We are far from helpless. We are far from hopeless.”
Families of hostages
As the fate of nearly 240 hostages still held by Hamas hangs in the balance, their families continue to urge world leaders to do everything in their power to bring them home.
The crowd heard from Chicago natives Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was kidnapped from the Supernova music festival on October 7.
“We hostage families have lived the last 39 days in slow-motion torment,” Rachel Goldberg said at Tuesday’s rally. “We all have third-degree burns on our souls.”
Hersh’s mother also led a chant of, “Bring them home now!” Referring to the Hamas underground tunnel system, she asked, “Why is the world accepting that 240 human beings from almost 30 countries have been stolen and buried alive?”
(For more on Hersh’s story, listen to a heartfelt conversation with his parents here.)
Debra Messing
Best known for her role on the sitcom Will & Grace, Jewish actress Debra Messing on Tuesday passionately advocated for Israel and Jewish people.
Messing lamented the “deafening silence” that has followed “a tsunami of hate” against Israel and Jews. Simultaneously, just like many other speakers at the rally, she conveyed a message of hope and optimism.
“This is madness. This is terrorism. But we will win,” she said. “We always have. We are strong, resilient, and devoted. And we will not lose ourselves.”
Elected Officials
Earlier in the war, the House of Representatives voted 412-10 to support Israel and condemn Hamas and Iran. That overwhelming and bipartisan support for Israel in Congress was palpable at the National Mall on Tuesday.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) both dispelled a common catch-all phrase that Hamas supporters have been using to dupe Americans — “From the River to the Sea, Palestine Will Be Free.”
“When Hamas says from the river to the sea, they mean all the present-day Israel should be a Jewish-free land,” Schumer told the crowd.
Johnson said that “The calls for a ceasefire are outrageous,” and added that he does not think young people and activists understand or fathom the implications of the lyrical but deadly chant.
“We’ve heard many echoes of Hamas’s rallying cry ‘From the river to the sea’ and I’m convinced that a lot of these college students who are engaging in these protests do not understand that is an explicit call for the extermination of Israel,” he said.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) also addressed the crowd. Leader Jeffries demonstrated the great resiliency of the Jewish people in the face of thousands of years of violence, hatred, and genocide. Senator Ernst recalled her emotional visit to southern Israel after the attacks.
Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.) noted the juxtaposition of Israel’s milestone 75th birthday and the 60th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech at the 1963 March on Washington.
“Those two anniversaries remind me that the Jewish people have long had a dream of Jewish liberation,” Torres said. “Theodor Herzl had a dream of emancipation from antisemitism. The Jews who were driven into exile for years had a dream of one day returning to their homeland.”
“We are here to tell the world that Israel is the realization of a dream,” added Torres, who is Black, and one of Israel’s strongest advocates in Congress. “Israel is the manifestation of the words ‘Never Again.’ Israel is the realization of a dream that will live on for the next 75 years and beyond.”
Deborah Lipstadt
As the Biden administration’s Special Envoy for Monitoring and Combating Antisemitism, Deborah Lipstadt brings to the table her extensive experience as an American historian. Not surprisingly, then, her comments at Tuesday’s demonstration cited President George Washington’s famed 18th-century letter to the Jews of Newport, R.I.
“[Washington’s] meaning and his message were quite specific,” Lipstadt explained. “In the United States of America, the bigotry of antisemitism must have no place.”
She added, “We echo our founding father unequivocally and unreservedly. This government stands shoulder to shoulder against Jew-hatred. We stand arm in arm to combat antisemitism, wherever it hides or attempts to reside.”
