Mayor Bass, marking Oct. 7 anniversary, promises to fight antisemitism at home

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass marked the one-year anniversary of the attack on Israel on Sunday, telling an audience on the Westside that city leaders are “committed to ensuring that the Jewish community always feels safe.”

Bass, speaking at a candle-lighting ceremony at the Museum of Tolerance, said L.A. had been profoundly affected by the “devastating terrorist attack” that occurred Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas militants stormed into Israel, killing 1,200 people and kidnapping 250.

“As conflict rises in the Middle East, we often see a troubling rise in antisemitism around the world, including here in L.A.,” she said. “So let me be unequivocally clear: Antisemitism has absolutely no place in L.A.”

Sunday’s ceremony, hosted by the Museum of Tolerance and the Simon Wiesenthal Center, was attended by several city leaders, including former Los Angeles County Sheriff Jim McDonnell, the mayor’s new pick for police chief. Described as an evening of remembrance and reflection, it was one of several events held in L.A. over the weekend commemorating the one-year anniversary of the attack.

On Saturday, hundreds of pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched through downtown Los Angeles, chanting, “Long live the intifada” and denouncing Israel’s war in Gaza and Lebanon. During that event, speakers called for both a cease-fire and an end to U.S. support for Israel.

Over the last year, Israel has staged sweeping counterattacks in Gaza, killing more than 41,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Its figures do not distinguish between combatants and civilians, but they indicate that at least half the dead are women and children. The fighting has also triggered a major humanitarian crisis.

Israel also has bombarded and sent troops into Lebanon in recent days, targeting Hamas and the militant group Hezbollah, further fueling tensions in the region.

Los Angeles police reported making a single arrest at the Pershing Square demonstration, detaining 26-year-old Alex Guillen on suspicion of felony vandalism. Guillen was observed spray-painting “Free Palestine!” on the L.A. police headquarters, according to department officials.

On Sunday afternoon, more than 100 demonstrators opposed to Israel’s attacks in Gaza gathered at Echo Park Lake to demand that the U.S. stop shipping weapons to Israel. The crowd, many clad in white, began the event by singing the words, “We will not avert our eyes” and “Palestine will be free.”

Benjamin Vizcarra-Barton, an organizer with Jewish Voice for Peace-Los Angeles, said he grieved for the people who died or were kidnapped on Oct. 7 and for the generations of Palestinians who have suffered or been killed during the Israeli occupation.

“We also grieve for the Lebanese people who have been killed by Israel’s senseless onslaught,” he told the crowd.

In the San Fernando Valley, about 200 people took part in a “Bring Them Home Now” rally on Sunday highlighting the plight of the Israeli hostages. That event, held outside the Balboa Sports Center in Encino, was designed to let families of the remaining hostages know that they are not alone, said Jessica Lipman, who heads the L.A. chapter of the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.

On the eve of the one-year anniversary of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel, community members attend the Rally in the Valley in support of Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.

(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

“We don’t want people to forget that people are still being held hostage,” said Lipman, whose group organized the rally.

During the event, U.S. Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Sherman Oaks) presented Yehuda Cohen, father of hostage Nimrod Cohen, with an American flag that had flown in the Capitol in support of Israeli hostages held by Hamas.

The anniversary of Oct. 7 will be the subject of more events in the coming days.

On Monday evening, hundreds of American Jews in Los Angeles are expected to gather outside City Hall to denounce “one year of brutal collective punishment by the Israeli government” against Palestinians. That event, organized by the Los Angeles chapter of If Not Now, will be held to grieve “every life taken” — Israeli, Palestinian and Lebanese.

Around that same time, the Los Angeles chapter of the Israeli-American Council and the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles is set to host “Remembering the Darkness, Rising With Hope,” a panel discussion featuring remarks from Bass, in Beverly Hills.

That event is billed as part of a larger national “show of solidarity and unity” for Israeli American and Jewish communities, as well as supporters of Israel.

Times staff writer Christopher Goffard contributed to this report.