Pro-Palestine activists held a vigil Saturday to honor over 100 journalists killed in the Israel-Gaza war since October 7 of last year.
Little Rock Peace For Palestine is an advocacy group organizing to raise awareness of suffering in the Middle East. The group has organized multiple protests against the war in Gaza and campaigned to urge local governments to pass a resolution in support of a ceasefire.
Tristine Lam, an organizer with Little Rock Peace For Palestine, opened the vigil noting the nonprofit Committee to Protect Journalists’ preliminary report shows 116 journalists have been killed while reporting on the war in Gaza as of August 23.
Lam read the names of five journalists recently killed, including Ismail al-Ghoul and Rami al-Refee, who were killed while reporting on the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.
Lam also criticized the western media’s role in the conflict, quoting from an Instagram post that used a New York Times headline as an example of what Lam called “manufacturing consent for the war in Gaza”.
The headline reads “Strike on Area Where Displaced Gazans Were Camped Kills Up to 25”, which photojournalist Walid Mahmoud screenshotted and posted on Instagram with the caption “‘an area where displaced Gazans are camped,’ is a weird way to say refugee camp.” Mahmoud also edited the headline to read “Israel bombs Palestinian refugees in Gaza again.”
“These media headlines are truly despicable in the words and content they use, but also in allowing the genocide to be supported by the US government.” Lam said.
The group laid three rows of blue shirts reading “PRESS” on the steps of the Arkansas State Capitol building, and three simulated body bags to represent the dead journalists. One group member carried a sign displaying a selection of zines (short printable publications designed for easy distribution). Another carried a large sign painted with a press vest and the phrase “As of Aug. 23, 2024, 116 journalists have been killed since October 7, 2023 making it the deadliest period since the CPJ started collecting data in 1992. ARMS EMBARGO NOW”. Another held a sign saying “ISRAEL Targets Journalists Aid Workers + Civilians”.
The group then took turns reading the names of journalists killed while reporting on the war. It took nearly 20 minutes to read each journalists’ name and associated media outlet. Some entries included the journalists’ age, many of whom were under 30.
Lam encouraged the group to look up the names of the journalists whose names they read.
“Learn about their story and what they reported on, and the conditions that they reported on,” Lam said. “Just so that they don’t die without being known. So they don’t die in silence.”
“They put their life on the line for spreading the truth and reporting on the truth of the genocide, so it’s important that we at least take the time to learn about their stories and learn what they did in spreading knowledge and truth.”
Ebrahim Abunasrah, another organizer with Little Rock Peace for Palestine, said he was “ashamed to be an American” because the U.S. sends weapons to Israel.
“We don’t send weapons that are small and very targeted, we send weapons that are huge and take out buildings.” Abunasrah said, encouraging the group to think about how they can make a difference and be more involved in politics.
Correction: a previous version of this article misspelled the name of Tristine Lam
