Groups Gather at Capitol in Solidarity with Bethehem, Sacramento's Sister City, Dec. 25

SACRAMENTO, CA – Area community groups – declaring “Christmas is Cancelled” – showcased a replica of baby Jesus under rubble that Sacramento's sister city, Bethlehem, has displayed in its churches at a gathering on Monday, Dec. 25, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on the West Side of the State Capitol.

Local organizations and community members read the names of children killed during this genocide by the Capitol Christmas tree off 10th St. in solidarity with the Palestinian people in Gaza and the West Bank.

They also filled out cards asking for a ceasefire to send to Newsom and other local, state and federal lawmakers.

“Celebrating on top of the tenderness that are these moments for Palestinians everywhere feels painful. That tenderness and tension needed to be acknowledged. In times like these it is so important to connect in communal care and understanding of the heartbreak (that is felt from the devastation of so many human beings being killed, displaced, and vulnerable to the winter war elements),” said organizer Rowen Rayneharte.

Rayneharte added, “We as a group learned that Bethlehem is Sacramento’s sister city, and it felt wrong not to acknowledge and honor their sentiments and actions of cancelling Christmas.”

And a local Palestinian activist noted, “We read about dystopian societies in books & see it in movies, but it's really strange to actually live in it. In regards to the holidays, millions of Americans are celebrating the birth of a baby who was born in Palestine while simultaneously witnessing live stream the mass murder of thousands upon thousands of Palestinian children while remaining silent to a genocide unfolding right before their very eyes. May this connection serve as a wake-up call to fellow Americans.”