Is Smiley Administration Protest Strategy Adding to Antisemitism in Providence
GoLocalProv News Team
Is Smiley Administration Protest Strategy Adding to Antisemitism in Providence
The protest was part of a national movement organized and deployed after U.S. and Israeli defense forces successfully combatted the Iranian attack on Israel over the weekend.
In Providence, the protest started on the sidewalk in front of the Textron building and, after an hour, moved into the middle of Westminster Street, blocking traffic.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTThe group — primarily comprised of Brown University and Rhode Island School of Design students — sang one specific chant calling for the elimination of the Israeli state.
The protest attracted a dozen Providence Police officers — a half dozen were deployed to stand protection for the protesters as they marched and chanted in the middle of the street.
Other officers diverted traffic around the group, who were blocking the street. According to Providence Police, the group did not have a permit.
As the protest continued in the street for more than one hour, GoLocal reached out to Mayor Brett Smiley’s office on the protest. Similar road-blocking protests in San Francisco, Oakland, and Chicago led to arrests.
“It's my understanding that you [GoLocal] connected with Chief Perez earlier on this. As he explained, there is always a balance between public demonstration and ensuring public safety. Today [Monday}, that is exactly what the Providence Police did by ensuring that traffic continued to flow and that both demonstrators and pedestrians in the area were safe,” said Smiley’s spokesperson, Josh Estrella.
Traffic on Westminster Street had to be diverted around the protesters.
“While the Mayor fully trusts the judgment of our police on how to manage a crowd, he is upset by the increased use of anti-Semitic rhetoric and has worked hard to ensure our local Jewish community feels safe,” added Estrella.
In total, the protest continued unfettered for more than two hours. During the protest, 12 officers, about one-third of the Department's patrols, were deployed to protect the protesters and to redirect traffic.
This incident comes as the number of antisemitic incidents increases.
According to the Anti-Defamation League, the protesters' chants are anti-semitic.
“‘From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free’ is an antisemitic slogan commonly featured in anti-Israel campaigns and chanted at demonstrations. This rallying cry has long been used by anti-Israel voices, including supporters of terrorist organizations such as Hamas and the PFLP, which seek Israel’s destruction through violent means.
It is fundamentally a call for a Palestinian state extending from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, territory that includes the State of Israel, which would mean the dismantling of the Jewish state.”
Nearly 200% Increase in RI
The number of antisemitic incidents reported in New England jumped 205 percent from 2022 to 2023, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) announced on Tuesday.
According to ADL’s annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents, the report showed a total of 623 antisemitic incidents of assault, harassment, and vandalism in the New England region (covering Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont) in 2023.
The number marks a 205 percent increase from 2022 and the highest number of antisemitic incidents ever recorded in the region.
In Rhode Island, the number of reported incidents rose from 19 to 52 in the one-year span -- a 172% increase.
“ADL has been carefully tracking antisemitic incidents for 45 years," said Rabbi Ron Fish, ADL New England Interim Region Director. “The numbers are simply stunning. We have observed a significant rise of incidents, followed by a surge, followed now by a tsunami. Behind each tracked data point is a family, a synagogue, a school, or a child who has been targeted for hate, simply because of their Jewish identity. This is intolerable in New England as it is anywhere in the country. We call upon everyone who cares about living in a decent society to unite and stop this rise in anti-Jewish hate. Antisemitism is not a Jewish problem. It is a societal problem. We can only solve it together.”
According to the ADL, the regional increase in antisemitic incidents reported to ADL outpaced the 140 percent increase reported across the country.
Nationally, ADL recorded 8,873 antisemitic incidents in 2023, the highest total since ADL started tracking such data in 1979. The ADL Audit of Antisemitic Incidents also recorded a dramatic spike of 351 antisemitic acts across the region post-October 7, when Hamas attacked Israel and killed more than 1,200 people.
Earlier in April, ADL gave Brown University in Providence a "D" for antisemitism on campus.
Read more here.