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Student Movement

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Members of Milwaukee SDS protest Zionist speakers. | Fight Back! News/staff

Milwaukee, WI – On November 21, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee administration put together a panel event featuring two speakers who oppose the genocide in Palestine and two Zionists. Pro-Palestine organizations across the city put out a call to mobilize people to the talk and pack the house with anti-Zionist elements. UWM Students for a Democratic Society was one of them.

The Zionist speakers included Rabbi Josh Herman, the executive director of the Milwaukee branch of the far-right Zionist group Hillel, and a political science professor at UWM named Shale Horowitz. They started off with a fictitious recounting of history, claiming that the blame for the genocide and occupation rests with the Palestinians and their unwillingness to “compromise.”

The comments from the two Zionists only got worse from there, including claiming that the Palestinian liberation chant “From the river to the sea” is a call for Jewish genocide; that a people who were victims of a previous genocide could not be perpetrators of a new genocide; that the Zionist state should be commended for its efforts to “prevent civilian casualties,” and that Muslims are the most successful colonial forces in the history of the world – especially, as stated by Horowitz, compared to Europeans.

To their credit, the other two panelists – Othman Atta, leader with the Islamic Society of Milwaukee; and Dr. Caroline Seymour-Jorn, professor and director of International Studies at UWM – responded to the genocide apologism with sharp rebuttals, reasoned positions, and factual accounts of the history.

The crowd, largely pro-Palestinian, responded more frankly, with jeers and laughter at the absurdities being put forward by the Zionist speakers. Members of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) took it a step further and held up red-painted hands whenever one of the Zionists would speak, symbolic of the blood on their hands and the hands of the government which they defend. The silent protest had begun to wear on them both as the event went on, with more and more frequent allusions to their detractors in the crowd. Horowitz in particular seemed to direct his vitriolic comments at the student demonstrators.

As the panel was coming to a close, the moderator pointed to UWM's chancellor, Mark Mone, and said that he had the unenviable task of figuring out how to navigate the challenges of creating a safer and more welcoming campuses from students of all backgrounds. He then turned to the panelists to provide advice for the chancellor, but before any of them could answer, a member of SDS shouted out, “Change the name of the library!” The SDSer was referencing the UWM library named after Golda Meir, an infamous former prime minister of the Zionist state. Most in attendance cheered and clapped. There was no response from administration.

SDS will be initiating a campaign in the coming weeks to pressure campus administration to make that change. Efforts are underway to unite other organizations around this project, particularly the Muslim Student Association and the UWM chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine.

#MilwaukeeWI #International #Palestine #AntiWar #StudentMovement #SDS

By Cas Casanova

Tampa 5 speaking tour event in Tallahassee. | Fight Back! News/staff

Tallahassee, FL – On November 17, Chrisley Carpio and Gia Davila continued their nationwide speaking tour with a stop in Tallahassee, Florida. On this tour, the Tampa 5 have visited 25 cities in 16 different states to raise awareness about their story – they were arrested for protesting Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ racist attacks on public education and are currently facing multiple felony charges and up to ten years in prison.

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By staff

Orlando visit of the Tampa 5 speaking tour. | Fight Back! News/staff

Orlando, FL – On Saturday, November 11, around 20 community members gathered at the Orlando Public Library for a discussion panel featuring the Tampa 5 as part of their national speaking tour. The event was hosted by Orlando for Gender Equality and the Florida chapter of the New Era Young Lords. The panel’s speakers consisted of Laura Rodriguez, Gia Davila, Lauren Pineiro and Chrisley Carpio of the Tampa 5.

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By staff

Protestors gather around as someone standing on the bed of a truck delivers a speech into a microphone. Protestors wave Palestinian flags.

Minneapolis, MN – On November 18, three University of Minnesota Twin Cities student organizations; (Students for a Democratic Society, Young Democratic Socialists of America, and Students for Justice in Palestine) held a rally and march starting in front of the Humphrey School of Public affairs on UMN campus.

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By staff

Kayla Patterson with UWM SDS speaks outside the campus administration during a rally and march on November 15. | Fight Back! News/staff

Milwaukee, WI – A spirited group of more two dozen student protesters gathered outside the Golda Meir Library on the afternoon of November 15 for a rally called by UW-Milwaukee Students for a Democratic Society (SDS). The assembled group chanted and heard speeches before beginning a march throughout campus.

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By staff

Minnesota students march for a free Palestine. | Fight Back! News/Sabry Wazwaz

St. Paul, MN – On November 11, over 600 college students from Saint Catherine University, Macalester College, Augsburg University, Saint Thomas University, Carleton College and the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities rallied at Macalester College and then marched in the Mac-Groveland neighborhood to demand an end to the ethnic cleansing of Gaza.

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By Bryan Tavish

Students backing Palaestine at Tallahassee Board of Trustees meeting.  | Fight Back! News/staff

Tallahassee, FL – On November 10, approximately 30 students at Florida State University attended FSU’s Board of Trustees meeting to demand the university divest from Israel. The students were organized by the Florida state chapter of Students for a Democratic Society (FSU SDS).

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Seattle high school students stand with Palestine. | Fight Back! News/staff

Seattle, WA – On November 9, over 200 students from high schools across Seattle walked out and gathered in front of the Henry M. Jackson Federal Building to demand no more U.S. aid to Israel.

As students from Cleveland, Franklin, Nathan Hale and Garfield schools marched and converged at the Federal Building, joined by activists and community members from across the city, the energy was electric. The crowd chanted “From Palestine to Mexico, all the walls have got to go!” and “Not another nickel, not another dime, no more money for Israel’s crimes!”

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By Omar Lazcano

Texas students stand with Palestine. | Fight Back! News/staff

Arlington, TX – On November 8, almost a dozen University of Texas at Arlington students gathered in the mall in front of the University Center to protest the Israeli bombing of Jabalia Camp, one of the largest refugee camps in Gaza.

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By Jake Holtzman

Austin students stand with Palestine. | Fight Back! News/staff

Austin, TX – On Thursday, November 9, students at UT Austin held multiple Palestine solidarity actions in response to the national day of action to Shut it Down for Palestine.

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