ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Hundreds of people gathered in downtown Rochester on Saturday for a Free Palestine Rally which started in MLK Park, near the Roc Holiday Village, and tracked all the way down to the Blue Cross Arena.

The rally was mostly peaceful outside of causing traffic backups on the streets as people made their way through downtown. 

There have been Free Palestine rallies in downtown Rochester over the past several weeks, but Saturday’s was among the largest so far this year.

Natacha Rivera was among the protesters who said that Saturday’s rally was more than just a collection of organizations coming together.

“This protest is different because we are bringing out people from the community, of all different races, all different backgrounds, all different religions, races, and ethnic backgrounds. So, this protest is very unique because we are bringing out Rochester. It’s not just about one organization, or one particular race, or nationality, or religion, it’s about standing together,” Rivera said.

Instead, Rivera said the rally was about bringing out as many people as possible who share their concerns over Israel-Hamas War.