Protestors rallied outside of Josh Hawley’s office urging the Missouri senator to call for a ceasefire in Gaza on Nov 9. The Missouri chapter of American Muslims for Palestine organized the protest Thursday in response to an international call to action to “keep building momentum” for a ceasefire through protests, walkouts and boycotts.
Two other protests were planned in St. Louis on the same day. Organizers with AMP-MO said they asked for a meeting with Hawley multiple times, but the senator refused. They gathered at 9 a.m. in front of Hawley’s St. Louis office in the Thomas F. Eagleton U.S. Courthouse, then marched across downtown.
The purpose of the shutdown, organized by a coalition of groups for Nov. 9, was to disrupt “business as usual,” calling on people to walk out from work and school, to picket in front of businesses that aid Israel’s government, and to protest.
Along with protests, Muath Salameh, an organizer with AMP-MO, claimed more than 100 businesses closed down Thursday.
Yousef Shalabi, whose family lived in Jerusalem, said he did not feel heard because of his Arab background.
“As we see our brothers and sisters, people who share our family names and our skin color being slaughtered, while our money funds it and our politicians don’t want to hear it,” he said. “Well we say to them today that we’re not just going to protest anymore, we’re going to take action. We’re coming for all of you in offices, we are funding you, and we’re not gonna vote for you.”
In the latter part of his speech, Shalabi said he was frustrated Hawley’s office refused to meet with Palestinian constituents.
“They did not even give us 30 minutes of their day to listen to our demands, to hear about the 10,000 people dead, over 3,000 children dead. Not 30 minutes did they want to hear about them.”
In a post on X following the protest, Hawley wrote, “To all those anti-Israel protestors who marched around my office today, I don’t care how many drums you bang or slogans you chant, I will not stop calling out the unconscionable attacks on Jewish Americans or waiver in my support for Israel.”
Amongst the crowd of about 100, Zane Al Hjouj, a 17-year-old high school student skipped school to protest with his community. He said he joined the protest downtown in part because he disagreed with Rashida Tlaib’s censure.
“Rashida Tlaib did not say anything anti-Semitic, and she did not say anything inciting violence. All Rashida is asking for is an immediate ceasefire and to stop the killing of innocent people,” Al Hjouj said. “The only Palestinian woman in Congress should not be censured for speaking up for her people.”
After spending an hour in front of the Courthouse, the protestors then marched to city hall and back, with local police blocking off a few streets.
In the middle of the march, the crowd stopped by the KSDK TV station on Market St. and chanted “Every time the media lies, a neighborhood in Gaza dies.” Many from surrounding office buildings came out to watch the protestors.
Dalal Smreen, 47, who is part of AMP, said she feels politicians do not care about the Middle East, claiming double standards in media coverage. While holding the banner with names of Palestinian children killed since Oct. 7, she said “This is occupation and we refuse the occupation and big cage. 17 years they don’t have water, they don’t have food, they don’t have medicine, and they don’t have any attention.”
Two other protests were planned on the same day. Around 200 protested at Manchester Rd in West St. Louis County, and again at Chouteau Park in the evening. Nearly a dozen Pro-Palestine protests have been organized in the region, with more planned in the coming weeks.
