GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Activists gathered at the Gerald R. Ford Federal Building and US Courthouse in downtown Grand Rapids Tuesday to show their solidarity with the Palestinian people.
In a statement shared with FOX 17, they demand the following:
- An immediate ceasefire
- An end to U.S. military aid to Israel
- An end to the Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands
The statement also called on the people of Grand Rapids to do the following: “rise up and demand an immediate ceasefire. Join a march, take a public stand, pressure your elected officials, be part of the global BDS [Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions] Movement, get your faith community to demand a ceasefire and do whatever you can to say emphatically, ‘not in our name.’”
The federal building that they were protesting in closes at 5:30 p.m.
The Grand Rapids Police Department confirmed to FOX 17 that three people were arrested for trespassing around that time.
GRPD says there was a small group of protesters in Congresswoman Hillary Scholten’s office who did not leave when asked— all three adults were arrested.
“This time, the activists felt strongly enough about it that they wanted to occupy the building. They understood that arrest was a possibility and a risk, but they feel like we have to disrupt business as usual. Children are dying. This is happening. Families have no place to go. They have no electricity. They have no food. They have no water. There’s rubble and people are trapped under it. Our aid cannot go to that genocide anymore, so they felt strongly that they had to up to pressure on our representatives for that,” Ames Carpenter, who lives in Grand Rapids, said.
FOX 17 reached out to Congresswoman Scholten, who gave us the following statement:
“I respect everyone’s right to peacefully make their voice heard and hope we can work toward our shared goal of peace and prosperity for all in the Middle East.”
