Palestine supporters stage ‘die-in’ outside state Treasurer Stacy Garrity’s office

• By Jaxon White/LNP | LancasterOnline

 

Manor Township resident Brett Chalupa silently laid face down on the cold pavement outside the Pennsylvania Treasury Department’s office building for ten minutes on Monday afternoon.

Chalupa, co-chair of the Lancaster Democratic Socialists of America, joined more than 20 pro-Palestine advocates in Harrisburg for a “die-in” to call attention to the more than 31,000 people who have died in Gaza since Israel’s invasion in the wake of the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and saw 250 people taken hostage.

“We want Pennsylvania to stop investing in genocide,” said Chalupa, who helped organize last month’s “Rally for peace in Gaza” in Penn Square.

He was referring to the state’s ownership of Israeli bonds worth roughly $56.4 million — including the $20 million acquired by Treasurer Stacy Garrity’s office after the Hamas surprise attack. Pennsylvania also holds about $8 million of other Israel-based investments, according to a department spokesperson. In total, those funds equal about 0.14% of the dollars overseen by the Treasury Department.

Carrying signs and shouting chants urging Garrity to “divest” from Israel, the crowd gathered outside at the Capitol Building’s front steps and circled toward the rear of the complex to reach the Treasury Department offices in the Finance Building.

As he marched, Lancaster city resident Zion Caro, 23, waved a painted homemade sign reading “Palestine will be free” and chanted along with the other protestors. He said he took the day off from his HVAC technician job at Home Climates to attend the rally.

“I can sacrifice a day off for someone suffering,” Caro said.

Philadelphia Democratic state Reps. Rick Krajewski and Chris Rabb attended the rally but both went inside the Capitol before the group staged the die-in.

“We shouldn’t be creating special designations for nation states that are bombing, that are bombing civilians day after day after day, and then we reward them with our tax dollars,” Rabb said. “Why are we allowing for this exceptionalism in the worst way?”

In response to the protest, Garrity pointed to the fact that many state treasurers have purchased Israeli bonds for “more than three decades.”

“I’m proud to continue that long-standing tradition, and I’m proud to stand with our ally,” said Garrity, who is seeking a second term as state treasurer in this year’s election. “If Hamas stopped fighting, there would be no more war. If Israel stopped fighting, there would be no more Israel.”

Ongoing rallies

Monday’s protest — organized by Harrisburg Palestine Coalition, Philly Families Ceasefire, Lancaster Palestine Coalition and MyLehigh Valley Youth Organization — was the latest in a series of Harrisburg-based gatherings focused on urging state and federal lawmakers to address the ongoing Israel and Hamas war.

In December, hundreds of Palestine supporters marched through the city’s streets calling for a permanent ceasefire.

Last month, when a similar group of organizations met in Harrisburg to criticize Garrity, 126 people were taken into custody by Pennsylvania Capitol Police and cited for trespassing. Both Chalupa and Caro said they were not present at that gathering.

Brendan Foster, an organizer from the Harrisburg Palestine Coalition, said groups at Monday’s protest did not acquire a permit for their demonstration.