Protesters block Sunnyvale Lockheed Martin facility over Israel conflict in Gaza
SUNNYVALE, Calif. - Protesters blocked entrances to a Lockheed Martin research facility in Sunnyvale on Thursday morning over what they say is the defense contractor's role in Israel's ongoing bombing of Gaza.
People with the Bay Area Palestine Solidarity coalition gathered at around 6 a.m. to protest Lockheed Martin's supplying of Israel with fighter jets, missiles and other weapons and surveillance technology. According to the group, Lockheed Martin supplies Israel with it's F-16 and F-35 fighter jets as well as Hellfire missiles and other surveillance technology used in its assault on Gaza.
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"We have gathered here to disrupt Lockheed Martin's operations and demand that the U.S. stop all arms sales to Israel," protester Maramiya Yensoon said in a statement.
Protesters laid in the rain, handcuffed together and covered by tarps in an attempt to stay dry. Lockheed's Space and Strategic Missile facility is where the company builds spacecraft for military and commercial use.
The demonstrators included students, teachers, tech workers and others who say they are concerned about what is happening in Gaza.
One Stanford student who attended the demonstration says he isn’t just protesting Lockheed Martin’s actions:
"My family is from El Salvador and they went through a proxy war where a lot of the ammunition were supplied by Israel… you can see a lot of the colonial connections that the Israeli military has had throughout the world," Carlos Ramirez told KTVU.
One protester told KTVU she was born and raised in San Francisco, but she participated in the demonstration because she does not want to be complicit in the violence being perpetrated in Gaza.
"We are in a unique position to be inside the belly of the beast… it is our responbility to respond to this level of violence…We are putting our bodies on the line to show that Lockheed Martin and the US government cannot continue to support this genocide," Lee told KTVU.
Demonstrators tell KTVU it felt powerful to stand up together and support one another today.
"I think this is a beautiful act of solidarity where we see people from all different diaspora communities all different countries here together trying to fight for what they believe in," Ramirez said.
A Lockheed Martin spokesperson said in a statement regarding the protest: "Lockheed Martin's core values are to do what's right, respect others and perform with excellence. These values provide clear, unambiguous and uncompromising standards for how we treat each other with understanding and compassion. We respect the right to peaceful protest and we are honored to partner with the U.S. military and our international partners to deliver strategic deterrence and security solutions."