The College Revolution: University Campuses Ablaze with Protests against Genocide in Gaza

Power to the students, and power to the people.

For over 200 days now, the Gaza Strip has been under direct attack by Israeli forces, rockets, and bombs: many of which are funded by the United States. Many scholars and diplomats are referring to Gaza’s situation as an open-air prison, meaning citizens have no way to escape the dangerous conditions they are forced to live in. As a result, Palestine has become a bloodbath, with the death toll reaching over 33,000 people since the conflict began on October 7th. The overwhelming majority of the victims are women and children. 

Columbia University students protest the genocide of Palestinians on April 22, 2024. (Source: The Hill)

Among the ripple effects of this violent conflict include the mobilization of U.S. college campuses, where young students are rallying together to fight against the injustices taking place in the Gaza Strip. Several universities across the country including Yale, Harvard, New York University, Emory, and the University of Southern California are reporting demonstrations calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Students have set up tents to perform sit-ins, some refusing to go to classes altogether. At some universities, these actions are prompting classes to be canceled. Students are also demanding that their universities stop funding the genocide of Palestinians by financially aiding large corporations that support Israel. 

The scenes on these campuses are harrowing and moving, displaying how the spirit of civil disobedience lives on in the new generation. To many, however, the authorities' responses to protesting students have been unnecessarily forceful. Despite the fact that these protests have been largely peaceful sit-ins, police backup has been called on-site at multiple universities. Nonetheless, the popularity of social media means several of these encounters between students and police officers have been exposed on TikTok, Instagram, X, and other platforms, forcing accountability.

An emotional video taken at Ohio State University depicts students standing in a circle around their Muslim peers, protecting them from campus police as they prayed. In the video, people can be heard chanting "Let them pray!"

A student is arrested on Emory University's campus after demonstrating. (Source: CNN)

In another video shot at Emory University in Atlanta, Head of Philosophy Department Noëlle McAfee is seen detained by police after she participated in a pro-Palestine demonstration. She is heard telling a student to inform the philosophy department that she's been arrested.

College campuses are in the midst of a revolution.

But civil disobedience is not new, nor are student protests. Disobedience is a centuries-old tactic to get a message across, used countless times in past historical events like the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War.

As we reflect on American history, we regard the ones who sat illegally in white-only restaurants, the ones who were sprayed with firehoses as they crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, and the students protesting the Vietnam War as heroes. Now that we watch history play out in front of our eyes, we must treat these students as such. They are making a difference in any way they can, doing something as simple as raising awareness about an inhumane crisis by sitting in a tent on the quad and refusing to leave. They are making a statement and making their voices heard.

In times like these, we need to ask ourselves which side of history we want to be on. Should we choose the side of the oppressors, doing everything in their power to silence the voices of the youth? Or should we pick the side of the revolutionaries, the ones who work tirelessly to stand up against injustices: even if it means getting arrested?

Let this be an opportunity for you to think about what side of history you stand on — and remember to always Be Mindful of your impact, Be Purposeful in what you do, and Be Positive in what you say.

Best,

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