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FRESNO, Calif. – Matching the green, black and red colors of the Palestine flag, hundreds gathered on Friday as the city of Fresno became one of a few cities in the country to raise the flag on government grounds since the Israel-Hamas War broke out in October.

It happened in the same downtown plaza where just two months ago, the blue and white of the Israel flag were also on full display. City officials raised that flag to mark solidarity with those killed during an incursion by the Hamas militant group.

According to Israeli information, 1,200 people were killed on Oct. 7. Reuters reports more than 17,500 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have been killed in response since then.

The dueling flag-raising events is just one way Fresno, a city of half a million, has marked the war.

The Palestinian flag-raising was sponsored by the office of Fresno Councilmember Miguel Arias. He said it was meant to show the city supports both Palestinians and Israelis, and that Fresno “loves all of us.”

“This is a place for everyone,” he told the gathered crowd. “We are all God’s children and deserve to live free of occupation and free of terrorist attacks.”

Arias, who is running for a seat on the Fresno County Board of Supervisors, said raising the Palestine flag was “no different than raising the flag for Israel, Ukraine, the LGBTQ+ community, or all the flags that we have raised this year.”

Flag politics

Flag-raising activities in the Fresno area have become hot-button issues.

Two years ago, Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer proposed creating “Unity Park” at Eaton Plaza in downtown Fresno as a place where specific flags could be raised for community causes — a “free speech area” for the city.

That came after backlash over flags that were raised in front of city hall.

Local Palestinians say, to them, their flag represents unity, strength and — now — remembrance of the lives lost in the Gaza Strip.

“This is a very proud moment for us,” said Layla Darwish, a Palestinian American and cofounder of the Palestine Freedom Project, of seeing her flag fly at Eaton Plaza. “Palestinians have been silenced for far too long.”

Other cities that have raised the flag include North Andover and Worcester in Massachusetts.

‘One minus us’

Raising the flags in Fresno hasn’t been without controversy.

Palestinians in Fresno were disturbed by comments Dyer made when the Israel flag was raised, including repeating unconfirmed reports of beheaded Israeli babies.

Darwish called Dyer’s actions a “slap in the face” to the local Palestinian community, and added she felt the Palestinian community was excluded from the city before last Friday.

But at the rally, Palestinians had their say.

“After incremental steps culminating in today’s flag raising, people in Fresno are working to make the ‘best little city in the U.S.’ ring true,” Darwish said, referring to a phrase at the entrance to Fresno on Van Ness Avenue.

Dyer has been hesitant to make public remarks about the conflict in the Middle East following the raising of the Israel flag. He did not attend the Palestinian flag raising event.

In a phone interview, Yasir Amireh, a cofounder of the Palestine Freedom Project, said he felt Dyer’s “One Fresno” slogan did not include his Palestinian community.

“Right now, it’s one minus us,” Amireh said.

According to Amireh, the mayor did share some private regret over his previous remarks and shared he was “ignorant on the subject.”

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Yasir Amireh, a cofounder of the Palestine Freedom Project, called for Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer to make a public apology following comments made at the raising of the Israeli flag in October

Esther Quintanilla / KVPR

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Layla Darwish, a Palestinian-American and cofounder of the Palestine Freedom Project, says raising the Palestine flag symbolizes unity and strength.

Esther Quintanilla / KVPR

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The Palestinian flag flies in Fresno — marking one of the few times since the Israel-Hamas war the flag has been raised in a U.S. city.

Esther Quintanilla / KVPR

Still, Amireh told the crowd at the flag raising, Dyer “is yet to fix his mistake and apologize in public.”

“We’re not going to be quiet anymore,” said Amireh. “We need to be treated equally.”

Dyer’s office did not respond to KVPR’s request for comment on this story.

Pro-Palestine activists in Fresno say they are hoping to bring a resolution supporting a ceasefire to the city council in the coming weeks. The U.S. has been recently criticized for vetoing a ceasefire resolution by the United Nations.

Darwish said until a permanent end of the war, she is encouraged by the show of support for the Palestinian suffering as the death toll grows.

“Today marks the turning point in a story of persistence and determination,” she said.

This story is part of the Central Valley News Collaborative, which is supported by the Central Valley Community Foundation with technology and training support by Microsoft Corp.