Sunday, April 28, 2024

It's an open book test #FreePalestine ... Pro-Palestinian protesters target White House Correspondents Dinner

LIBERTY & free speech today


 
Chants of ‘shame on you’ greet guests arriving for the annual White House correspondents’ dinner
 

CBS News: White House Correspondents' Dinner overshadowed by protests against Israel-Hamas war

"..... With hundreds of protesters rallying against the war in Gaza outside the event and concerns over the conflict and humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the perils for journalists covering the conflict, the war hung over this year's event. But speakers inside made only passing mention of the conflict despite some having to run a gauntlet of demonstrators. Mr. Biden's speech, which lasted around 10 minutes, made no mention of the ongoing war or the growing humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

"Shame on you!" protesters draped in the traditional Palestinian keffiyeh cloth shouted, running after men in tuxedos and suits and women in long dresses who were holding clutch purses as guests hurried inside for the dinner.

Chants accused U.S. journalists of undercovering the war and misrepresenting it. "Western media we see you, and all the horrors that you hide," crowds chanted at one point.

Other protesters lay sprawled motionless on the pavement, next to mock-ups of flak vests with "press" insignia.

Ralliers cried "Free, free Palestine." They cheered when at one point someone inside the Washington Hilton — where the dinner has been held for decades — unfurled a Palestinian flag from a top-floor hotel window.

Criticism of the Mr. Biden administration's support for Israel's six-month-old military offensive in Gaza has spread through American college campuses, with students pitching encampments in an effort to force their universities to divest from Israel...."  https://www.cbsnews.com/news/white-house-correspondents-dinner-overshadowed-protests-israel-hamas-war/

 

Pro-Palestinian protesters target White House Correspondents Dinner

Protesters greeted administration officials, journalists and celebrities as they arrived at the annual White House Correspondents Association dinner in D.C. on Saturday, demanding that President Biden do more to protect Palestinian lives in Gaza.

Why it matters: The Democratic Party is divided over Biden's approach to the war in Gaza, with some Arab Americans threatening to withhold their support for Biden until he puts more pressure on Israel to minimize Palestinian casualties and allow more humanitarian aid to enter Gaza.

  • With tensions flaring at university campuses across the country, Democrats are concerned that division over Gaza will fracture the winning coalition that Biden assembled four years ago.
  • More than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed since Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel on Oct. 7.

Driving the news: "Why are you attending a party when people are dying," one of the protesters shouted.

https://www.axios.com/2024/04/27/palestinian-protesters-white-house-correspondents-dinner 

NPR: A demonstrator with red paint on their hand and face is seen behind a police barricade during a pro-Palestinian protest over the Israel-Hamas war at the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner, Saturday April 27, 2024, in Washington. photo Terrance Williams/AP

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