BOSTON — Four Franklin County women returned from the state capital on Thursday, disheartened after attempting to deliver petitions and letters to consulates calling for peace in Gaza amid the ongoing war.

Sherrill Hogen, of Charlemont, Priscilla Lynch, of Conway, and Paki Wieland and Dorothea Melnicoff, both of Greenfield, traveled to Boston as part of an effort by a coalition of peace groups calling on nation-states to unite with South Africa in charging Israel with genocide.

“How do you spell ‘frustration?’” Wieland said in a phone interview while walking the streets of Boston in hopes of being allowed into a consulate. She and the others said they called several consulates, only to generally hear messages requesting communication in the form of text or email. They also said the consulates were well-staffed with security guards. “We’ve been to buildings, but we haven’t gotten into any consulates, because we did not have prior appointments,” Wieland added.

Thursday was selected as the day for people across the United States to present a petition and letter to representatives of foreign nations. This effort was spearheaded by CODEPINK, World BEYOND War, RootsAction and The People’s Forum. The petition reportedly got nearly 30,000 signatures. Petition deliveries were scheduled for embassies and consulates located in key cities, including Boston, New York City, Hartford, Miami, Los Angeles and Washington D.C. Consulates provide many of the same services and carry out the same official functions as an embassy, just on a smaller scale.

The petition pertains to Israel’s actions since the organization Hamas, which controls Gaza, attacked the Jewish state on Oct. 7, killing 1,139 people and taking approximately 250 hostages in what has been described as the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust. Israel responded to the assault with a large-scale ground invasion, displacing nearly all of Gaza’s 2.3 million people and resulting in at least 22,000 deaths.

Hogen said the four Franklin County women, who were joined by two friends from eastern Massachusetts, were, over the phone, invited upstairs by the Colombian consulate at 31 St. James Ave., but they ultimately did not make it past security. At the Irish consulate at 535 Boylston St., she said they were allowed to leave their petitions and information at the front desk.

“It was an interesting lesson in how inaccessible [government agencies] are to the public. It just was amazing how many barriers there are,” Hogen said. “We felt that our message was very important and we salute South Africa for taking this step, but we need as many ways to support that as possible.”

Lynch, a CODEPINK member, argued Israel has been committing genocide against Palestinians for at least 75 years. She said she wants a cease-fire and “a free Palestine.”

“Nothing is going to be resolved until Palestine is free,” Lynch said on the way home from Boston.

“Today’s event was less than stellar,” Wieland added, “but the beat goes on.”

Reach Domenic Poli at: dpoli@recorder.com or 413-930-4120.