Palestine & Venezuela solidarity protest in Maine shopping mecca Freeport

L.L. Bean doing renovations so we used their fence

Starting to walk thru shopping district

Walking from the other side of the street 

Two sides crossing the street

Closing circle

Yesterday more than 30 folks from around Maine gathered in front of the famous L. L. Bean store in Freeport for our monthly coalition solidarity protest. Each month we go to a different part of the state and hold these vigils at busy intersections. We began them in February 2022 as the US-NATO proxy war on Russia using Ukraine as the hammer heated up. We've done them ever since in all kinds of weather.

We had folks line both sides of the street with signs, flags and banners for nearly an hour. During much of that time I walked up and down in front of the L. L. Bean store and handed out a good stack of flyers to those who would take them.

Basically we had three kinds of people pass us. First would be Trump supporters who tended to be gruff, then liberals who would say 'I agree' but often refused flyers, and finally people with their heads down avoiding eye contact. But I did succeed in handing out the flyers.

After nearly an hour we walked down both sides of the very busy sidewalks and street for several blocks. As we walked we chanted about Palestine, Venezuela, the cost of wars, and what the unfulfilled needs were in our nation. After several blocks we switched sides at a crosswalk and then proceeded back to the starting point. 

As we were chanting, especially about the cost of war and how the future generations were going to be stuck paying for endless war, I noticed many shoppers nodding in agreement. I can just imagine them inside the shops and being struck by the increase in prices for everything. Hopefully they connected some dots in those moments.

At the end we gathered in a circle and passed the megaphone around for introductions and comments. Palestinian Faisal Kahn made a rousing speech when it was his turn to speak. He reminded us about the suffering people in Gaza and the now beleaguered West Bank. He urged us all to keep doing the good work in order to stop the US-Israel-UK-EU-Arab monarchies bloody war on the Palestinian people.

Jamila Levasseur also told us about the eight young women and men in the UK, accused but not yet tried for Palestine solidarity actions. They are hunger striking as they demand an end to censorship, immediate bail, fair trials, that Palestine Action be removed from the terrorist list, and that Britain terminate its relationships with Elbit Systems, Israel’s largest weapon manufacturer. Some have been hunger striking over fifty days. See more about this here

We deeply appreciate those who come from far across Maine to these regular events. It's a wonderful community we have built and even though we are not together for very long we are always buoyed by being together.

Our next statewide coalition protest will be held in Saco, Maine along the bridges between that city and Biddeford. Park at the Amtrak station. This will be held on Saturday, January 10 at 1:30 pm. (Saco is the home of the General Dynamics facility that builds the guidance systems for bombs the Pentagon sends to Israel.) 

Best wishes to all.

Bruce 

~ Photos by MB Sullivan