Thousands attend ‘Palestine in the Park’ fundraiser for Gaza in Montreal

The event’s main focus was a 3D recreation of the Gaza Strip showing damage over the past two years

NewsHannah Scott-Talib — Published July 28, 2025 3 minutes

The fundraiser, organized by PYM in collaboration with the Canadian Palestinian Foundation of Quebec (CPFQ), took place from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. and featured over a dozen food, clothing, jewelry and art vendors. 

However, according to multiple PYM members, the main focus of the Palestine in the Park fundraiser was its Gaza exhibit—two 3D recreations of the Gaza Strip from an aerial view, depicting its state before and after Oct. 7, 2023 and Israel’s bombardments. 

Sarah, a member of PYM who has been granted full name anonymity for safety reasons, said that the exhibit serves as a form of forensic architecture, showcasing the scale of the violence over the past couple of years in a way that is easier to understand than news reports.

“I think it’s hard to digest [what has happened] sometimes,” Sarah said. “To see how it was before versus now is very impactful.”

“This [exhibition] is a way for us to confront the attempt [by Israel] to erase us,” PYM volunteer Rama Al Malah added, “and to be able to say that this is not just a few bombardments here and there. This is a systematic and deliberate way of targeting any system in Gaza that can sustain life, to try and eliminate them.”

In addition to the Gaza exhibit, the fundraiser hosted kids’ activities such as paper poppy-making, letter-writing to Gazans and an educational Palestinian “passport tour” that led guests throughout different areas of the park labelled and associated with Palestinian regions. Beside the Gaza exhibit, a timeline of Palestinian prisoners and their backstories was displayed along a makeshift wall. 

“When we talk about the educational side [of this event], passing on knowledge to the next generation is going to be a really huge element of it,” said PYM member Haya, who has been granted full name anonymity for safety reasons.

She continued to say that Palestine in the Park also aimed to showcase the various ongoing campaigns organized by PYM both locally and internationally, and the actions that people can take to get involved in the movement and to continue standing up to the Canadian political class.

According to Haya, the Israeli occupation forces have shifted their offensive tactics in Gaza recently. 

“[The genocide] has evolved in really significant, really horrific ways,” she said. “One year ago, what we were looking at was bombardment [...]. We were looking at attacks on hospitals and schools by the Israeli occupation forces. Right now, what we’re looking at is starvation: a catastrophic level of starvation in Gaza.” 

Currently, Gazans are facing extreme famine as aid is being blocked from entering the city, while Israeli forces reportedly kill civilians waiting for aid. Since the start of Israel's siege on Gaza almost two years ago, over 100 Gazans have died of malnutrition.

Part of the event’s purpose, Haya continued, was to bring awareness to these changes in violence tactics over the past years. 

Both Haya and Al Malah expressed that the amount of support from the Montreal community, both before and during this event, was crucial to the fundraising efforts. 

“There are a lot of different communities not only showing up to this day, but also contributing to this day,” Haya said. 

“We’re seeing the Palestinian Arab community and allies, we’re seeing children and elderly from the community,” Al Malah added.