From very different backgrounds, we come together on this day to express our solidarity with the resistance of the people of Palestine. The evening was structured into several parts – lectures, cultural contributions and an open microphone – where many comrades, especially comrades from Palestine itself, had their say.

The activity was introduced with a lecture by a Greek comrade of the Open Palestine Meeting, who reported on the situation in his country: Thousands of people are taking to the streets as part of the revolutionary and mass movement to show their solidarity in the current situation. In addition, the relationship of the Greek government to the Israeli state, in which Greece follows the course of the imperialists of Europe and US imperialism, was also discussed. The lecture ended with vast consent and applause.

Afterwards, another comrade gave a twenty-minute lecture on the topic of the resistance struggle in Palestine. It dealt with the different facets of the struggle, from various expressions of resistance in culture such as murals, anti-imperialist music and films, to mass demonstrations and land invasions, to resistance to the settlement policies by the poor peasants. Particular emphasis was placed on the role of the armed resistance struggle. It was emphasized that the resistance of the people of Palestine against its occupiers, i.e., against the State of Israel, and the imperialists behind it, first and foremost US imperialism, is justified. But also the role of the Federal Republic of Germany as a supplier of weapons for the genocide was made clear and in particular it was emphasized that the oppressed nations and peoples of the world have every right to choose their own forms of struggle, leadership and organization and that any deviating position from this is imperialist chauvinism. Again and again, the lecture was met with applause and very militant slogans from the audience such as "Free Free Palestine! Free Free Gaza!" or "From the river to the sea, palestine will be free!"

After the lectures were held, we moved on to the many cultural contributions that were held that evening. A comrade from the West Bank, for example, recited a poem about the current situation of the people in Gaza and the hardship imposed on them by the terror and bombardment of the Israeli forces. After the cultural contributions, there was the opportunity for an open microphone. A dozen people took the opportunity to speak and told the audience in a lively and combative way about their experiences in Palestine and other oppressed nations, or gave speeches they had written themselves. The action was also supported by the comrades of the SDAJ Bochum, Palestine Solidarity Duisburg and the Initiative Students for Palestine Kleve.

In conclusion, for us and many of the participants, the campaign is a great prelude to the upcoming actions in the following weeks. As many said that evening: "With these activities we are filling a vacuum in Bochum". As part of the preparations for the 8th of March, we distributed leaflets and posters of the Red Women's Committees, which were enthusiastically received precisely because they have a special reference to the struggle of the oppressed in Palestine. In the same way, several planned lectures in NRW were advertised on this occasion. Many different issues of the Red Post, in which the question of Palestine was taken up over the years, were sold through it. However, it is particularly noteworthy that the event was of course only the first of a series of other activities that are already being planned:

On Friday, 22.03.2024, the demo organized by the Open Palestine Meeting will take place in Bochum (more details will follow)

The next Open Palestine Meeting will take place on Sunday, March 3rd at 6 p.m. at Neuland (Rottstr. 15) in Bochum.