West Hartford for Israel has led weekly marches on Sunday morning to call for the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. 

By Bridget Bronsdon 

For the past several months, dozens of community members have gathered at the corner of Starkel Road and Albany Avenue to march for the release of hostages held in Gaza by Hamas. The march, organized by West Hartford for Israel, has received wide support and continuously large turnout as scores of attendees gather every week. 

Ari Schaffer, the lead organizer explained why they march. “We’re marching to call for the release of the hostages, there’s still 116 hostages being held in Gaza by Hamas, an internationally recognized terrorist organization. We just want to make sure they’re not forgotten. Among those, there are eight Americans who are being held, several of whom are dead but their bodies are being held in Gaza tragically,” he said. 

The participants are also marching to ensure elected officials don’t forget about the hostages, Schaffer said. 

As for Connecticut’s elected officials, state Sen. Derek Slap (D-West Hartford) has not forgotten and joined in this past Sunday. Before starting the march, Sen. Slap addressed the attendees and spoke of how West Hartford can stand against hate and protect its community members. 

“We can increase security funding at houses of worship. I was very pleased to be able to start that program a few years ago, we need more funding for that so we’re going to keep fighting for that. We can improve education in our schools as well, that’s a piece, but probably most importantly is that we all need to stand together for peace and stand against hate, all kinds of hate,” he said. 

Slap also said he and Schaffer have been discussing ways to make Albany Avenue safer for those crossing on their Sabbath. 

As for the weekly turnout, the marches are well-attended, reported Schaffer.  

“It’s been incredible to see the turnout for this. We’ve had 75-100 people every week. I think the first week we did this I expected 15-20 people to come out but we had over 100 and we really had a good and inspiring turnout week after week after week. You know, we’ve had to have security unfortunately, that’s just the reality of being Jewish, especially doing events like these, but thankfully we’ve had a lot of community support for that as well. It’s really been inspiring to see how everyone’s turned out for a cause like this,” he said. 

Schaffer also highlighted West Hartford’s support in other realms. Schaffer said the local synagogues have security needs due to a surge in anti-semitism in the past six months. Luckily, Schaffer said elected officials at the federal, state, and town levels have been “incredibly supportive” in providing the needed resources. 

Sen. Slap is just one of those elected officials working to support the community. “A few years ago the federation approached me about beginning a fund and a program for providing grant funding for nonprofits and houses of worship that might be vulnerable to some kind of attack,” he said. 

The senator said there was “great bipartisan support” and since then, millions of dollars have been allocated for funding and the program has worked in tandem with the Lamont Administration. Most recently in December, another round of funding was released, said Slap. 

“There’s things that the government can do to help stand up against hate and making sure that our hate crime laws are as strong as they need to be, and that’s not just for Jewish communities, it’s of course for everybody,” he said. 

In addition to support from elected officials, community members have also found solace in each other. 

Renana Kadden, a West Hartford resident of 40 years said the community has “always been welcoming and supportive, I have nothing but good things to say about West Hartford.” She also said her synagogue has been immensely supportive. 

For Kadden, she has close ties to Israel. 

“Israel means a lot to me, I have a son who lives there,” she said. “They’re okay in Jerusalem but they have a very good friend whose son is captive in Gaza.” 

For Lal Patel, a West Hartford resident since 1973, he spoke of the hostages’ parents, and as a parent himself, he discussed the unimaginable position they must be in. 

While each attendee has a personal story and unique perspective to share, they have created a community together to fight for a common cause. 

This past Sunday, attendance remained strong as over 100 participants showed up to march, and while every Sunday Schaffer says, “I hope next week we don’t have to do this march,” the attendees will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.

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