I was privileged to be one of about 900 people on the three chartered planes arranged by the Detroit Federation to take us to the March for Israel rally in Washington D.C. The plane I was on landed on time, 10:30 a.m., at an airfield adjacent to Dulles Airport. Everyone excitedly stood up and waited in the aisle to get off the plane. We were anticipating the buses that had been ordered to transport us to the National Mall. After about 45 minutes, we were told that the buses weren’t coming and that there was a problem: The drivers refused to take us to the rally.
Detroit Federation
started working on getting other buses, but TSA and FAA regulations were making
this difficult. As more and more time passed, you could feel the mood dropping,
and by one o’clock, we realized that we might not make it to the rally.
Then at around
1:15, some buses pulled up! We left the plane and got on the buses. They were to
take us outside the airport, where we could get Ubers to the rally, or possibly
these buses would take us straight to the rally. We were all thrilled to be getting
closer to our intended destination even though we knew we would no longer be able
to participate to the fullest extent because it was already so late.
Unfortunately
the timing did not work out at all because it seems that they needed these buses
for a previously arranged job. So we got off the buses, and the 300 of us stood
next to the plane.
Unwilling to
let the moment pass, we had an impromptu mini-rally of our own right next to the
plane with signs, flags, and songs.
At around 2:00,
we had to get back on plane because we were not allowed to congregate on the tarmac.
We sat on the plane for the next three hours until the new flight crew could arrive
to fly the plane back to Detroit. The crew was very kind, leaving the door open
for the sake of those who were claustrophobic. Drinks and snacks and sandwiches
provided by the Federation were distributed.
Though we all
were sad and disappointed, there was no anger or grumbling – not at all. The predominant
attitude was, okay, this is what it is, and we’ll deal with it.
Meanwhile,
as I heard later, the other two Detroit planes also had issues with the buses. One
of the planes did end up at the rally but only for a very short time. On the third
plane, half the passengers got on buses, but there were not enough seats for everyone,
so half of the passengers had to stay on that plane. Those two planes did not arrive
back in Detroit until the wee hours of the morning.
When we finally
got bused back to our cars in Detroit, we found a whole barbeque set up, with jugglers,
music, and food! While we had missed the feeling of being part of a huge crowd with
a shared purpose, we felt appreciated, and the day ended on a high.
Looking back,
I realize that, although we did not make it to where we wanted to be, we were exactly
where we were supposed to be. Our predicament was mentioned at the rally and in
the news. We were a huge part of the history of the day. We had made an impact.
We were victims
of antisemitism on our way to a rally to protest antisemitism. Most people would
not have believed that in the United States of America in 2023 something like this
could happen.
Now we know
it can, because it did!
