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lethompson2006
May 243 min read

College Students Protest for Palestine

Over the last few months, waves of protests have swept over college campuses across the nation in support of Palestine. These demonstrations are largely in response to the United States government continuing to provide financial aid to Israel amid Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip, which have killed over 35,000 Palestinians and displaced almost 2 million since October 2023.


Most of this American aid is given to Israel through grants as part of the Foreign Military Financing program, which is used to invest in Israel’s defense industries and is estimated to provide around 15% of its total defense budget. The acts of mass violence and genocide being committed against Palestinian civilians by the Israeli government, aided by United States military funding, have led college students to form protest encampments for the purpose of making statements about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.


The goal of most on-campus groups is to encourage divestment, where universities would eliminate financial relationships with organizations that support the Israeli government. Harvard student Hanan Wuhush is one supporter of the sentiment, stating that to end the occupation, “We need to actually divest from companies that profit off of the genocide of Palestinians.” 



Though multiple universities have responded to protesters’ calls to action with promising statements, none have outwardly pledged to implement divestment from Israel.


On May 6, Rutgers University published a statement made by its president, Jonathan Holloway, in response to student protesters on the New Brunswick campus. “Some people have wrongly come to believe that Rutgers agreed to divest from companies that do business in Israel… We did agree to meet with the students who made the request and nothing more.” Today, Holloway testified in front of the US House Committee on Education and the Workforce, defending himself against allegations of ignoring antisemitism within pro-Palestine encampments and assured that Rutgers had investigations underway.


On May 10, following the arrest of several student protesters by police, the University of Wisconsin’s Madison campus declared they would oversee “facilitation of access for SJP [Students for Justice in Palestine] to meet with decision makers to discuss disclosure and investment principles and… support for scholars and students impacted by war, violence and displacement.” This was followed by the release of a statement from the Milwaukee campus backing a ceasefire and agreeing to a discussion of divestment.


Several schools in the University of California system have pledged their support for a ceasefire in Gaza, and UC Berkeley announced that it will conduct a “comprehensive and rigorous examination” of their investments, though they did not release any definitive statements about divestment.


Following the release of numerous universities’ statements regarding pro-Palestine demonstrations, students have been vocal about their opinions on their colleges’ responses and have expressed disagreement with the arrests and suspensions of many. Students participating in the encampments have faced disciplinary action due to various accusations, such as disturbing the campus, spreading hate speech, or criminally trespassing, which is seen by many as a violation of rights to free speech.


When asked to describe his experience being arrested while protesting, Columbia University student Bashir Juwara recounted that “I described to [the police officer] why I did what I did, because I believe that students should be protected. Students should have a right to peaceful protests and assembly.”


Laith Shalabi, another Columbia student arrested during the protests, defended the cause by expressing that “There's not a single university left standing in Gaza. They're all destroyed. Thinking about each one individually, on a human level, and that each university had a student body.”


Harvard University student Hanan Wuhush made another statement that "These students are standing in solidarity with the students in Gaza. And with that they are being suspended, they are being threatened… It's not about just not getting a degree. It's more than that. It's why these students are getting suspended. The question is why."


As the number of Palestinian deaths continues to increase exponentially, young people across the nation and the world urge politicians to consider the humanitarian side of the conflict and act on their moral obligation to intervene in mass violence. Students continue to protest their colleges’ roles in the conflict and work to ensure that their schools represent good morals and care about protecting people everywhere.

 





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