Wednesday, October 7, 2026
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Lots of stops all day long! Join the ride whenever/wherever you like!
Revolutionary Bicycle Club
Wed, Oct 7, 2026, 10:30 AM
Meet at 10:30 for coffee, roll at 11.
It's the third anniversary of October 7th. Let's ride our bikes together to mourn the dead and honor all those fighting for a better world. This casual-paced ride starts in the morning and ends in the evening, bringing chanting and Palestinian music to all quadrants of the city. There will be lots of stops along the way for food and activities, and we welcome you to join at whichever stop is convenient for you and ride with us as long as you like. The full list of stops/times will be posted closer to the date of the ride. Inexperienced riders and families with kids are welcome, but for those bringing kids, please note that we can't promise there won't be any dirty language in our playlist! 🙉 Don't forget your keffiyehs and flags 🇵🇸 -------------------------------------------------- WHY WE RIDE ON OCTOBER 7: October 7th marks the anniversary of the start of a genocidal assault on Palestinians in Gaza. Conservative estimates put the death toll at 70,000+. The true number is likely much higher, with many deaths going unreported as the dead are lost under the rubble. The International Association of Genocide Scholars has concluded that this is, in fact, a genocide. We ride, first and foremost, to mourn the victims of this ongoing genocide, and to raise awareness of the fact that many Palestinians are still fighting for their lives. But we also ride for another reason: to honor those who are fighting back and making changes – including those doing so right here in Portland. Because October 7th wasn't just the start of a horrific genocide; it was also the start of a major shift in Western awareness. Abuses that Palestinians have endured for decades are finally being seen and talked about widely, and change is happening. We recognize that the popularization of the Palestinian cause has also come with a push to assign blame to singular bad actors and their associated political parties – a convenient strategy for war profiteers who want us to look the other way while they continue to bulldoze Gaza. If you've been paying attention to current events, you likely know that politicians like Trump do not emerge from a vacuum; his political rise was supported and enabled at all levels of American society. Likewise, Netanyahu's criminal actions can't be considered aberrant when recent polls have shown that a majority of Israelis support the removal of Palestinians from Gaza. Corruption and racism is deeply entrenched in our intertwined societies, enabled by corporations, real estate moguls, and power-hungry religious leaders. We can't escape the problems by installing new political leaders within the same fundamentally flawed system. And so it is crucial to reject superficial political solutions, and celebrate those who are working to shake up the system at a foundational level. We honor dock workers who refuse to load weapons shipments, volunteers traveling to the West Bank to defend Palestinian farmers, local activists working to pass human rights legislation, journalists getting information past walls of propaganda, communities coming together to protect their immigrant neighbors from ICE, and many others who've put their bodies and livelihoods on the line to stand up for what's right. And we ourselves are part of this movement when we ride our bikes together. When we choose a means of transportation that isn't powered by fossil fuels, we reject the idea that oil companies like Chevron have the right to drill in occupied Palestinian waters, and we reject the normalization of handing over our $$ to corporations that require violent US imperialism to thrive. Free Palestine isn't just a phrase; it's an action. See you on the ride. 🇵🇸🇵🇸🚲🚲🚲
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