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Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) National President Morton A. Klein released the following statement:
The ZOA is proud of many of our leaders and members, and over 300,000 Americans from throughout the country who attended the massive, historic #MarchforIsrael rally in Washington, D.C., to support Israel’s efforts to defeat the Iranian-backed Hamas terrorist organization, oppose antisemitism here and abroad, and demand the immediate release of the hostages. #BringThemHomeNOW! The rally organizers and every organization and individual involved deserves tremendous credit!
Here are some excerpts from several of the many memorable speeches, and our comments:
Former Soviet political prisoner Natan Sharansky’s meaningful speech: Sharansky eloquently recalled that in the same spot where 300,000 people were now gathered to support Israel, some 250,000 people gathered in 1987 to declare, “Let my people go!” in support of Soviet Jewry, giving strength to him and other prisoners of the Soviet regime. "Many of your grandfathers fought for our freedom. Many of your parents fought for our freedom. Many of you fought for our freedom. It is clear that as long as we stand together and fight together, we will win. This is what gives us hope today in Israel.”
Sharansky also spoke about the terrible problems on American campuses: “Today, the legitimacy for regimes like Hamas comes from Oxford, Harvard, Yale, Penn and all these centers.” But he reassured the crowd: “We defeated the Soviet Union - we will defeat our enemies today!”
House Speaker Mike Johnson’s excellent, insightful speech explained: “. . . As Netanyahu said so well, this is a fight between good and evil, between light and darkness, between civilization and barbarism.” . . . The calls for a ceasefire are outrageous. (Audience chanting “No ceasefire.”) We stand with you on that. Hamas terrorists waged the bloodiest assault on Jewish lives since the Holocaust, and there are hundreds of hostages, many of them Americans, still stuck inside Gaza. Israel will cease its counteroffensive when Hamas ceases to be a threat to the Jewish state. . . .”
Absolutely! No ceasefire until the Hamas threat ceases and every hostage is home!
Senator Joni Ernst’s important speech about the need for continued steadfast support for Israel: She noted that during her visit to Israel shortly after October 7th, hostage families and all concerned implored: “Do not let the United States cower, when the rest of the world starts to. Stand steadfastly in your solidarity.”
Senator Ernst then expressed that solidarity: “How anyone in America could sympathize with these terrorists is truly unfathomable. Friends, there should not be a shred of antisemitism in our country. Not now, not ever. . . . Not only today, but in the coming weeks and months, as Israel fights to secure their most basic human right, the right to life, the United States must remain resolute. In the Senate, we will continue to stand shoulder to shoulder with all of you, our Jewish friends in Israel, the United States and around the world. . ..”
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