Members of Durham’s Mothers for Ceasefire chapter are participating in a week-long fast to demand Israel allow aid into Gaza as famine spreads through the besieged territory.
The group, which mobilizes parents and caregivers around ending what many experts have deemed genocide in Gaza, gathered Wednesday evening at Main and Broad Streets, banging pots and pans with wooden spoons and holding a string of paper plates.
“We’re seeing with our own eyes, an entire population just starve and die in front of us. So it’s really the least we could do to fast in solidarity and try to get attention on the issue,” says Lauren Khayr, a lead organizer.
Khayr is one of 20 local parents participating in the fast. Participants are fasting at varying levels through September 6: some are giving up coffee and dining out, others are severely restricting their calories, and others are doing water-only fasts.
Famine was officially declared in northern Gaza on August 22. The UN and major international aid organizations say the crisis is man-made and could be resolved if Israel stopped severely restricting aid trucks’ access to Gaza. The Israeli government contends it allows adequate aid and blames distribution problems on Hamas. The government has not provided evidence for those claims and has killed more than 200 journalists documenting conditions inside Gaza.
Credit: Photo by Lena Geller
Among those protesting at the demonstration Wednesday was Andrew Silver, a Jewish dual citizen of Israel and the United States who refused to serve in either country’s military in the 1970s.
“I am appalled that Jewish boys will agree to obey orders to commit genocide, and I have to raise my voice against it,” says Silver, whose shirt read “Never Again?” on the back.
A dozen children were at the protest, some holding signs, others eating pieces of watermelon that a parent had brought to share. The fruit has become a symbol of Palestinian resistance, as its colors match the Palestinian flag.
“The act of sharing the sweet fruit and witnessing the little hands grabbing the tiny pieces of watermelon felt sacred as we continue to watch children and their families being starved and killed, all day everyday in Gaza,” says Jackie Morin, who helped distribute the fruit to non-fasting protesters.
Credit: Photo by Lena Geller
The demonstration drew one counter-protester, Dave Brumbaugh, who carried a sign with photos of Israeli hostages. He described Mothers for Ceasefire as supporting an “evil cause.”
When asked about the starvation in Gaza, Brumbaugh claimed that the only people starving in the territory are Israeli hostages who were taken by Hamas two years ago and remain there. Brumbaugh dismissed reports of widespread starvation and said he had seen “pictures of the markets in Gaza, which are overflowing.” Those claims contradict reports from the UN and multiple international aid organizations documenting food shortages across Gaza.
The week-long fast in Durham is part of a national relay organized by Parents Solidarity Fast 4 Gaza that will rotate between three dozen locations through the end of the year, though organizers hope their demands are met before then.
“As parents, we believe we’re uniquely positioned to speak out on this,” Khayr says.
Follow Staff Writer Lena Geller on Bluesky or email [email protected]. Comment on this story at [email protected]