Long Beach chapter of Run for Their lives walk in support of Israeli hostages

The Long Beach chapter of Run for Their Lives hosted another peaceful walk last Sunday, part of a global movement dedicated to raising awareness of the plight of Israeli hostages held in Gaza.

Between 60 and 80 participants gathered with posters of many of the hostages captured by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, and a Run For Their Lives Banner.

Founded in California’s Bay Area by a group of Israelis in partnership with the Hostage and Missing Families Forum, Run for Their Lives has expanded internationally, with participants around the world walking or running to show solidarity and to call for the safe return of the hostages.

The Long Beach chapter’s weekly walks are organized by local volunteers working to keep public attention focused on the hostages’ situation. Esther Langer shares brief biographies of two hostages with the group each week, and documents each event with photos and videos shared online. Tara Bogart Spiess oversees the graphic design of banners and fliers, edits the visual images from each walk and posts the materials on both local and international platforms to ensure Long Beach’s visibility on the global Run for Their Lives site. Frada Pasik oversees the creation of posters, banners and flags for the group, which display the hostages’ photos and nationalities.

“We want people to remain cognizant that the hostages are Israelis, Arabs, foreign nationals, Druze, Jews, Muslims, Christians, children, men, women, grandparents and even a great grandparent,” Bogart Spiess said, speaking for Langer and Pasik as well. “We feel we cannot go on with our daily lives knowing that these innocent people, young and old, are in perilous danger in the tunnels of Gaza.”

The idea of creating a local chapter of Run for Their Lives came together after Langer attended a rally in Plainview, the hometown of one of the hostages, Omer Neutra, where she learned about a Run for Their Lives group in the Five Towns area. The three joined the effort in April. A few weeks later, they decided that Long Beach should have its own walks to raise awareness locally. They contacted the head of the international organization, Shira Weiss, who sent the link to many resources to help them start their own chapter and worked with City Councilman Chris Fiumara to learn how to proceed while satisfying the guidelines of the city. The first walk took place on July 7.

Before each Sunday’s walk, the organizers promote the event in local group chats, usually posting on Thursday and Saturday nights. The walks are kept intentionally quiet, with no chanted slogans, and last just 18 minutes to symbolize Chai, the Hebrew word for life.

“We are hopeful for the lives of those hostages that remain alive in captivity, so they can come home and rebuild their lives,” Bogart Spiess said. “And for the dead to be buried near their beloved families.”

The walks have received a positive response from the community. The participants get a lot of thumbs-up and waves, and some people join in, according to the organizers.

The chapter also follows the global movement’s practice of recording a brief video at the end of each walk. In it, participants say, “Run for Their Lives, release them now, Long Beach, New York,” which is shared on social media. Former Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg showed his support for the effort by attending last Sunday’s walk.

The organizers plan to continue to hold the walks each week, to maintain awareness of the hostages’ situation, until they are safely returned.

The walk takes place every Sunday unless there is a conflicting function. For more information, visit Run4lives.org.