17,000 Children’s Shoes Displayed on Pennsylvania Avenue in Memorial Honoring Gaza’s Young Victims
Title: Art and Activism Intersect: Artists Against Apartheid Memorialize Gaza’s Children Through Boots and Banners
On March 5, 2024, a striking visual memorial appeared along Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, DC: approximately 17,000 pairs of children’s shoes arranged in a solemn tribute to each young life lost in Gaza since the start of the Israeli military campaign in October 2023. This symbolic installation was a central feature of a pro-Palestinian protest organized in part by Artists Against Apartheid (AAA), a multidisciplinary collective based out of New York City’s cultural advocacy organization, the People’s Forum.
As the Israeli-Palestinian conflict continues to incite widespread human tragedy, efforts like these reconnect the urgency of distant events with the immediacy of the human experience. In a world saturated by digital headlines, memorials like this serve as physical confrontations: reminders that statistics on a page represent lives, families, and futures lost.
🧵 A Line of Grief and Resistance
The memorial made use of shoes — ballet flats, flip-flops, velcro sneakers — to illustrate the enormous toll on Gaza’s youth. According to UNICEF and other sources including Al Jazeera, the number of children killed during this ongoing conflict likely surpasses 17,000, though estimates vary.
Jasper Saah, a Palestinian-American multimedia artist and organizer with AAA, described the installation as a way to bring presence to loss. “As we’re standing here, this line will bring the presence of these children,” Saah said.
Organizers collected shoes from community drives in New York, Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia, with supplies arriving via bus by protesters from Baltimore, Richmond, and beyond. The display was purposefully placed in a high-traffic protest zone, coinciding with a nationwide day of demonstrations dubbed “Hands Off,” which also included marches against former President Donald Trump.
🎨 Art as a Tool for Truth
The participation of over 100 artists underscored AAA’s belief in art’s power to bear witness and mobilize communities. The group prepared not only the evocative shoe installation but also created red-painted mock body bags representing deceased children, portraits of journalists killed in war zones, protest banners featuring detained students, and a giant puppet of Trump with dripping red hands—an image meant to criticize his vocal support of Israeli military actions.
AAA’s artwork also included a nearly 200-foot-long scroll listing names of Palestinians killed in Gaza, carried by demonstrators throughout the citywide march.
During the rally, activists held up portraits of journalists such as Hossam Shabat and Shireen Abu Akleh, both killed under controversial circumstances involving Israeli forces. These illustrations showed the journalists in blue press vests positioned against a glowing yellow background. Volunteers helped construct and carry them through the streets in tribute.
📣 Healthcare Workers as Victims and Symbols
Northern Kentucky for Palestine, another group joining the demonstration, brought attention to the December detention of pediatrician Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya. He was accused of terrorism by the Israeli military while serving as the director of a Gaza hospital. Human rights organizations, including Amnesty International and Doctors Without Borders, have documented the deaths and abductions of numerous medical professionals in the region, raising international alarm about the erosion of healthcare protections during wartime.
Activists carried banners painted with the names of lost medics and doctors, confronting onlookers with the grim reality behind blanket terms like “collateral damage.” “In a war or conflict, you don’t kidnap doctors and murder healthcare workers,” said Mohammad Ahmad of Northern Kentucky for Palestine.
🛠️ The Process Behind the Protest
Behind the powerful visual displays were weeks of preparation at the People’s Forum. At volunteer meetings, artists, actors, students, and other advocates united to paint, staple, and build symbols of dissent. Mia Sterbini, an actor and artist with AAA, helped erect the Trump puppet and student banners. “Trump, with two bloody hands, signifies his ongoing support for the genocide of the Palestinian people,” Sterbini said.
Workshops and organizing meetings continue on a weekly basis, as AAA and its partners plan ongoing efforts to push political consciousness through gallery spaces, streets, and social media platforms.
📍 Beyond Protest: A Cultural Movement
AAA exemplifies a growing global tendency in which art and activism converge to challenge policies and inform public perception. More than mere symbolic resistance, pieces like the children’s shoe installation translate political data into tangible, humanizing visuals. These projects prompt reflection, drive public engagement, and serve as tools for collective mourning and mobilization.
As activist Jaylen Strong put it, “Art is a tool … this is me communicating what actually needs to be done. No matter what it is, if you’re an artist or if you’re a barber, it’s about what you do every single day to commit yourself to humanity.”
🔚 A Continuing Story
Organizers