Student organizations hosted two events this week to condemn violence in Palestine.
Muslim Student Association (MSA) hosted the first event of the week, a memorial for the lives lost in Palestine. The event aimed to “acknowledge and pay tribute to the thousands of deceased,” according to their Instagram.
The memorial on March 26 featured a presentation discussing a brief history of Israel and Zionism. Following the presentation, attendees used poster boards to write the names of people in Gaza who have been killed.
Muhammad Musozoda, the reservations coordinator of MSA, said that the event was a response to the increase in violence occurring in Palestine. Musozoda said that they tried to print out a list of the names of all the victims, but could not because it would have required so much paper.
The vigil also follows a similar event put on by Jewish Life.
“Billy Barlow made very stupid and ignorant comments about how we are on the right side of history and how we are on the right side now,” Musozoda said. Musozoda added that propaganda says that supporting Palestinians is the same as supporting terrorists. He emphasized the importance of doing research and looking for facts instead of just blindly believing.
“You do not have to be a politician to denounce genocide. In fact, that is the one thing you can’t be,” Musozoda said.
The protest was hosted by Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP). Titled “Shut it Down! For Palestine,” the rally began at 4:30 p.m. in the Hewitt Quad. Prior to the protest, a student walkout took place from Mahar, Rich, Lanigan, Shineman, Wilber, Tyler and Park Halls at 4 p.m. A Starbucks Walkout took place at Lake Effect Café at the same time. SJP’s president also tabled to promote the protest on March 24.
Leila LaJoie, a journalism and English student at Oswego, attended the protest. She said that students met at the quad at 4:30 p.m. and then began a walk across campus.
“Before we marched we chanted at the quad, had some student speakers and had Palestine flags distributed to wave as we went across campus,” LaJoie said.
Speakers at the protest presented written pieces, the history of Palestine and “acknowledgment of how this protest aligns with fighting for other issues, such as the genocide going on in Congo and wave of violence in Haiti,” LaJoie said.
She described that the route began at the quad, stopped in front of Lake Effect Café, and went around the outside of Marano Campus Center and Shineman Hall. She added that two University Police cars were present.
Protestors chanted throughout the march, saying things such as “Free Palestine” and “Hey-hey-ho-ho, genocide Joe has got to go,” which LaJoie said referenced “the Biden administration offering continued support to Israel such as with military aid.”
Since its founding, Israel has been the largest recipient of U.S. aid, with about $300 billion in “total economic and military assistance,” according to the Council on Foreign Relations.
After the march, students gathered back in the quad, and the president of SJP, Kaeillyn Jimenez, invited students to share their thoughts. LaJoie said that students expressed many frustrations, “such as the lack of support they felt from campus, especially regarding how SUNY Oswego President Peter O. Nwosu handled his email and statement last month.”
LaJoie took the opportunity to speak as well, and said “I first acknowledged my privilege as a white woman and then went on to explain to other protesters that […] we should be informing those around us and making sure we are holding others accountable.” She specifically discussed calling out friends and family who may be shopping at places on the boycott list, or how she sees many students visiting the two McDonald’s locations in Oswego.
“I thought it was a good turnout,” she said. “Many showed up, our chants echoed through campus and the protest was able to give students a type of support that has not been provided from the higher ups as of yet.”
Additional contributions by Nathan Sprenger and Evan Youngs.
Photo by: Darwin David
