Ceasefire rally returns to South San Francisco despite hate incident last week

Dan Thorn
·2 min read

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (KRON) – Pro-Palestine protesters were back in South San Francisco Wednesday night after they say a man attacked them last week. Video showed the man physically and verbally assaulting members of “Change SSF.”

The group has been demanding a ceasefire in Gaza and they were rallying again on Wednesday. The man in the video was arrested by South San Francisco police and charged with battery and hate speech.

Organizers with Change SSF say this kind of vitriol is unfair and unacceptable because they’re simply calling for peace and an end to the war, and they’re not going to stop their protests until it’s over.

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The 57-year-old suspect was caught on camera bumping, hurling insults at and even spitting on demonstrators.

“I don’t think being anti-genocide and anti-war is controversial but apparently they feel especially agitated by our messaging,” one protester said.

Change SSF and CA-15 for Palestine rallied in the same spot where the incident happened Wednesday evening. Out of fear of the return of any bad actors, organizers asked for children to be kept at home.

“It’s really unfortunate because my son does wish that he could be out here with us. This is a very important cause along with other human rights causes for him and for our family,” another protester said.

Following last week’s violence, doxxing has also been a concern for the group so KRON4 was asked to not share the names of any ralliers.

But the demonstrators are also not staying silent, waving Palestinian flags and getting the attention of drivers along El Camino Real. Change SSF says they will not be deterred from their mission by men like this.

“I think this is a matter of human rights and I think if you’re advocating against the preservation of human life you should really take a good look at yourself,” a protester said.

These specific demonstrations were not meant to be a weekly occurrence, but after last week’s attack, the group felt compelled to keep coming back here. They’re planning on another rally in front of the civic campus next week.

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