Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) ramped up a crowd of supporters at a rally on Saturday, calling for a ceasefire in the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.
Bowman’s comments were made during a rally where Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) also spoke. The New York congressman stated that people were “coming after” him, his family, and his children, and asked, “What am I supposed to do?”
“What am I supposed to do?” Bowman asked the crowd. “You’re coming after me. You’re coming after my family. You’re coming after my children. I’m not supposed to fight back? I’m not supposed to fight back? We gonna show them who the f**k we are.”
“I’m not supposed to fight back? We gonna show them, who the fk we are!” Spoke Rep. Bowman along with Rep AOC and Bernie Sanders at a rally in the Bronx as Pro-palestine protesters chant to disrupt the rally.
Video by Ed Quinn Desk@freedomnews.tv to license pic.twitter.com/0UmNJN7FQs
— Oliya Scootercaster (@ScooterCasterNY) June 22, 2024
As the crowd started shouting, “Bowman, Bowman,” the Democrat Congressman began hyping up the crowd and chanting, “Bowman” as well.
Bowman can also be seen chanting, “Ceasefire now, ceasefire now,” along with the crowd.
“We are not going to stand silent while U.S. tax dollars [kill] babies, and women and children,” Bowman added.
Bowman has been a supporter of Palestinians. In October 2023, days after Hamas attacked Israel, murdering 1,200 people and taking more than 250 people hostage, Bowman called for the United States to “welcome” refugees from Palestine into the country.
Bowman was one of 13 members of Congress who did not co-sponsor a resolution to stand with Israel.
During a recent interview on CBS’s The Late Show, Bowan called for a “Palestinian state” to be built using resources from the U.S.
“We have a foreign policy that pretty much follows the idea of peace through strength, and what that means is we need to have a very strong military so that we can scare other countries into doing what we say,” Bowman said. “I wish we would use our wealth and our resources and our means to lead with diplomacy.”
Video footage from the rally also showed Sanders being booed as he stated that “Israel has the right to defend itself against a terrorist attack.”
Incredible scene today as Bernie Sanders is booed at a Jamal Bowman rally for saying that Israel has the right to defend itself against a terrorist attack. pic.twitter.com/zwjLyysIRt
— Eli Klein (@TheEliKlein) June 22, 2024
Sanders has previously stated that Israel “has a right to defend itself,” while stating that Israel “does not have [the] right” to leave thousands of women and children in Gaza dead.
The Vermont senator has also stated that he will not attend an upcoming speech by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in July.