On Thursday night, Nov. 15, anti-Israel protesters gathered outside of President Obama’s re-election campaign headquarters in Chicago to protest what they call “Israeli war crimes.”
The protest was organized by the Palestine Solidarity Group, the Chicago Movement for Palestinian Rights , the U.S. Palestinian Community Network, and Ameican Muslims for Palestine. Ahmed Rehab of the Council for American Islamic Relations (CAIR), John Beacham of the Party for Socialism and Liberation/ANSWER Coalition, and friend of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Leah Bolger, the President of Veterans for Peace were featured speakers at the event.
None of the speakers were short on controversial comments; however, John Beacham and Leah Bolger’s remarks were particularly stunning.
Beacham declared:
The biggest terrorists in the world today are in the Pentagon, they're in Washington and Tel Aviv… And we can win here in the United States for Palestine, by building a movement, that shakes the foundations of this country by building international solidarity with all those who are standing up to the terrorist acts of the U.S. and Israeli Government.”
Bolger echoed Beacham, asking the crowd, “You know who the real terrorists are? The United States, the people in the uniforms.”
As usual, with any left-wing protest in Chicago, members of the International Socialists Organization and other Marxist activists were abundant.
Dennis Kosuth of National Nurses United and the International Socialist Organization performed his usual obstruction and interference while I attempted to conduct interviews. Kosuth followed me around, instructing his minions to take my photograph and also instructed protesters not to speak to me. At one point Kosuth stood behind me while I attempted to film the speakers, and intentionally began coughing and spitting on the back of my head.
While the protest was staged in front of President Obama’s campaign headquarters to urge the President to take a stand against Israel, protesters still voiced their support for the president, and praised his re-election over the “evil” Mitt Romney.