Meet-and-greet protested for connection to Paligen bomb factory
Garland, TX – On July 2, outside the Garland Chamber of Commerce meet and greet, the DFW Anti-War Committee held a protest to demand that Garland Independent School District (GISD) and Dallas College stop sending students to build bombs in the Paligen Technology factory.
The event was hosted at Tavern on the Square, the owner of which berated, threatened and called the police on protesters for writing chalk messages on the public sidewalk near his business. Messages included “Stop the bombs Garland,” “Stop partnering with Paligen” and “No to Garland students building bombs.” Police came and went without incident and the protest proceeded.
“We were able to have some really good conversations with people in Garland who were horrified to find out that schools are partnered with a place like Paligen that’s been involved in so many war crimes,” said Kai Leslie of DFW Anti-War Committee and Freedom Road Socialist Organization. The MK-84s produced by Paligen have been heavily used by Israel in the genocide in Palestine, including the bombing of a school that killed 65-year-old retired school principal Mohammad Eltif, along with over 100 others. Israel has also used Paligen’s MK-84 to bomb dozens of universities in Iran.
Regarding the private GROW networking event being protested, Kate Deremo of DFW Anti-War Committee explained, “This is one of Paligen Technologies opportunities to connect with the local business community. The Dallas County Manufacturers’ Association, which is a subset of the Chamber of Commerce, is the direct link between Paligen Technologies and GISD and Dallas College. Their membership in the DCMA is the driving factor in both their access to students as well as influence in educational programming.”
DAWC has standing plans to protest Dallas College board meetings to continue to pressure for Paligen to be dropped from all partnerships with schools and to end student involvement in building bombs at the facility. The next Dallas College protest will be at 4 p.m. on August 11 at Dallas College headquarters.