Artists and activists rallied outside the entrance of the Art Basel Miami convention center to demand a permanent ceasefire in Palestine. Protestors also called for an end to Miami-Dade County’s investments in Israeli bonds. Demonstrators lined up along Convention Center Drive holding Palestinian flags and placards that read “Divest From Death” and “Call It What It Is: Genocide.”
Protestors, under the collective name ‘South Florida Coalition for Palestine’, includes both cultural workers and members of the nationwide anti-Zionist group Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP).
“Netanyahu, what do you say? How many kids did you kill today?” chanted protesters. Others, including fairgoers exiting the Convention Center who were taken by surprise by the demonstration, booed at the group; one woman shouted, “Release the hostages.”
At least 16 police officers surrounded the protesters as they unfurled and held up a massive green banner with the words “Let Palestine Live” on the sidewalk facing the building parking lot. An hour into the action, a demonstrator was arrested after an apparent scuffle with an officer who blocked him from crossing into the protest area.
