At least 150 people gathered in front of the U.S. District Court in Eugene on Monday to rally and march in support of Palestinians, marking the one-year anniversary of the Hamas-led attack on Israel that left roughly 1,200 dead and more than 250 people taken hostage.
With signs clad in sayings like "your tax money is arming genocide," "victory to the resistance" and "EPD, KKK, IDF are all the same," protestors took to the streets at the intersection of Mill Street and 8th Ave., blocking local traffic with bicycles. Activists chanted phrases like "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free" and "Viva, Viva Palestina."
Bike officers with the Eugene Police Department appeared to monitor protestors as they made their way down High Street and onto 13th Ave. toward the University of Oregon campus.
At the start of the march, protestors were advised to stay silent as they passed the Erb Memorial Amphitheater on the UO campus as local groups, including Ducks 4 Israel, Oregon Hillel, and Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity were hosting a commemoration to honor the lives lost of Oct. 7, 2023.
"Together, we honor the ways that Israel and the Jewish people have been forever changed by this past year," said a Ducks 4 Israel Instagram post .
When marchers passed the Amphitheater, activists in the crowd instead shouted phrases like "colonizers out," "free Palestine," and "rot in hell." Many of them also lifted the middle finger at commemoration attendees.
The event was scheduled as part of the Anti-Imperialist Coalition's "Intifada Week" in Eugene.
"On this day, one year ago, the Palestinian people bravely launched a coordinated effort against the Zionist state of Israel, which has been violently occupying Palestine for decades," an unidentified speaker told the crowd. "We must remember that the genocide of the Palestinian people did not begin on October 7th and the resistance to that genocide, the armed resistance, did not begin on October 7th. The people of Palestine have been fighting for almost 100 years against mass displacements, imprisonment, and massacres. They have every right to fight back, they have every right to rebel."
"We must make a clear and resounding call for the victory of the Palestinian resistance and the fall of Zionism," the speaker said.
The brutal Oct. 7, 2023 invasion swept into Israel and caught military defenses by surprise. Hamas gunmen attacked army bases, civilian communities and an all-night music festival about 3 miles from the Gaza border.
Israel retaliated the next day. The ensuing battles — against Hamas in Gaza, then Hamas allies, including Hezbollah in Lebanon and Iranian forces in Iran — illustrated the aggressive hostility in the region.
Though sources disagree on the number of deaths, Palestinian civilians in Gaza have suffered the most. At least 41,788 Palestinians have died and 96,794 have been wounded since Oct. 7, Reuters reported, citing the Palestinian enclave's health ministry.
The conflict has sparked numerous protests across the U.S., with some supporting Israel's military action as part of its right to defend itself and others condemning Israel's counterattacks that have killed non-combatants, including journalists and aid workers.
Monday night's protest in Eugene began around 5:30 p.m. Marchers were given three rules: to stay tight and stick together, "flow like water" and reverse if met with barricades.
Police officers were on scene but no significant incidents were reported.
"We are monitoring and contacted the group to offer assistance with facilitating their constitutional rights ," Melinda McLaughlin, spokesperson for the EPD, told The Register-Guard.
Several legal observers with the local chapter of the National Lawyers Guild were present at the march to "monitor law enforcement," said Lauren Regan, executive director of the Civil Liberties Defense Center. Regan was among about 20 other legal observers.
"Every time activists ask for legal observers to be present, we can deploy ourselves as part of the local National Lawyers Guild chapter and so we were asked to be here tonight," Regan said.
The march concluded with a speaking event at the Erb Memorial Union lawn on the UO campus and a short march down University Street. Organizers said EPD gave their cart convoy a ticket.
"They follow marches, and they pretend they're protecting us, but we know they're protecting private property, the university, and the interests of the rich and powerful," said an unidentified speaker at the event.
Two Israeli flags were also burned on the pavement near the Memorial Union, though it was unclear who lit the flags on fire.
Haleigh Kochanski is a breaking news and public safety reporter for The Register-Guard. You may reach her at HKochanski@gannett.com .
This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Pro-Palestinian activists march through Eugene streets on Oct. 7 anniversary
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