Pro-Palestine Protesters Delay US Military Ship They Say Is Delivering Weapons to Israel

It was still dark out on Monday morning when hundreds of pro-Palestine protesters blocked the entrance to Port of Tacoma, Washington, with the goal of thwarting a U.S. military cargo ship they said was planning to load and transport military aid, including weapons, to Israel. Protesters picketed the boat to try and prevent it from being loaded, and indigenous activists attempted to block it in their canoes, chanting “free Palestine.” Despite their efforts, 12 hours later, the boat was ultimately loaded. 

It was the second attempt to stop the MV Cape Orlando: On Friday morning, around 100 protesters had swarmed the ship at the Port of Oakland in California, after activists were tipped off that the vessel was preparing to depart for Tacoma, where it would pick up military equipment and then make its way to Israel. 

Video shows protesters in Oakland climbing the ladder to the ship as at least one worker aboard the ship appeared to express solidarity by raising their fist, blowing kisses, and giving them thumbs up. Three protesters were arrested, and the ship’s scheduled departure for Tacoma was delayed by 9 hours. 

The protests in Oakland and Tacoma were coordinated under the banner of #BlockTheBoat, and spearheaded by The Arab Resource and Organizing Center, a San Francisco-based non-profit that characterizes the Israeli government as an apartheid state. The protest activity at those ports coincides with the grim news that, according to the Hamas-run Palestinian health ministry, the Palestinian death toll has surpassed 10,000 due to heavy bombardment from the Israeli government since Oct 7, when Hamas militants crossed the border into Israel, killed 1,400 people, and took 240 hostages. 

The MV Cape Orlando is part of the Ready Reserve Force, a subset of military vessels that are strategically anchored at ports around the country and primarily “support transport of Army and Marine Corps unit equipment, combat support equipment and initial resupply during critical surge period,” according to the U.S. Maritime Administration. 

Retired dock worker and long-time labor and community activist Clarence Thomas told protesters in Oakland on Friday morning that a worker onboard the MV Cape Orlando alerted activists to the ship’s plans to bring weapons to Israel. “We did not realize that this vessel, which has been here for quite some time, would be on this kind of mission,” Thomas told protesters. “If it were not for workers who are feeling conflicted about being on this vessel, we wouldn’t be here this morning.” 

Pentagon spokesperson Jeff Jurgensen told VICE News that the Department of Defense was “aware of the incidents in question.” Citing “operational security,” Jurgensen said that they were unable to provide details on “transportation, movement details or information regarding the cargo embarked on these vessels,” saying only that the ship was currently “supporting the movement of U.S. military cargo.” 

There’s a long history of political activism at West Coast shipping docks, some of which has involved unionized shipping workers. 

In 1984, local members of the International Longshore Workers Union (ILWU) coordinated with local activists and refused to unload cargo ships from South Africa to protest Apartheid.

Drawing inspiration from that protest, in August 2014—in response to Israel launching a military operation on the Gaza strip—a coalition of pro-Palestine activist groups organized a days-long blockade of a ship from Zim, an Israeli government-owned cargo company. The purpose of that action was to raise awareness about the BDS (boycott, divestment, and sanctions) movement. Citing the ongoing protests and heavy police presence (including an anti-Iraq war protest in 2003 which resulted in union members being injured by rubber bullets), local ILWU members refused to cross the picket line by unloading the ship, saying they’d only do so once police had dispersed. 

Protesters claimed victory when, in 2021, Zim again attempted to dock in Oakland and encountered similar pushback from protesters and unionized longshore workers. Zim ultimately said they would seek out other ports in the West Coast to offload cargo. 

In March 2007, activists with the Port Militarization Resistance led intense anti-war protests at ports in Tacoma and Olympia, which were being used to transfer military hardware, including armored vehicles, from the 4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division at Fort Lewis, onto ships bound for Iraq. The following year, on May 1, ILWU shut down all West Coast ports to demand an end to the war in the Middle East. 

Meanwhile, dockworkers in Barcelona, Spain, released a statement on Monday demanding a ceasefire in Gaza, and saying they will refuse to load or unload ships that are carrying any military equipment for Israel. 

Unionized dockworkers in Genoa, Italy, released a similar statement on Monday. Their announcements follow last week’s call from Belgian trade unions, which includes shipping workers, to refuse to handle military shipments to Israel. 

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