Above photo: Pro Palestine protesters gather around the Audubon Tea Room with noise-making equipment. Fight Back! News staff.
New Orleans, LA – On the night of December 11, organizers and activists marched towards the Audubon Tea Room at the beginning of “FedFest 2024,” a fundraiser hosted by the Jewish Federation, an organization dedicated to supporting the apartheid state of Israel.
The protest commemorated Human Rights Day (December 10). Among the groups organizing the noise demonstration were Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) and New Orleans Stop Helping Israel’s Ports (NOSHIP).
The event began at 7 p.m., with protesters arriving soon after and staying for roughly two hours. Attendees with keffiyehs, banners and signs disrupted the event with megaphones, a variety of instruments, and even pots and pans. Signs read slogans such as “NOLA Jews say stop arming Israel!” “JFED funds genocide” and “Fund schools, not genocide! Ceasefire now!”
“JFED, you can’t hide! You’re supporting genocide! No Zionists in NOLA streets!” shouted the crowd.
The Jewish Federations of North America, a national Zionist network of organizations, has spent millions to lobby for the state of Israel. The local chapter, the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans, has paid for billboards on some of the busiest streets in the city that proclaimed, “No hate in our home.” This was in response to the growing popularity of the Palestinian solidarity movement, and the ceasefire resolution campaign launched over the summer. Protest organizers utilized the imagery of their billboards on banners that replaced the original text with “Zionism is racism” and “No hate in our home (We export hate to Israel)”.
Near the end of the event, participants picketed around the entrance of the Audubon Tea Room before returning to their original positions.
Throughout the fundraiser, various donors paid much attention to the protest. Some looked through the windows, while others walked outside to view the noise demonstration. When the event ended, protesters yelled “Shame!” at the stream of attendees leaving for the night.