UW-Milwaukee SDS responds to the National Day of Action for Palestine, takes aim at renaming campus library
Milwaukee, WI – On November 2, over 50 students at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee (UWM) rallied then marched for the National Students for a Democratic Society Day of Action to demand justice for Palestine. The event began and ended in front of the university library, named after Zionist and former Prime Minister of Israel Golda Meir.
The event began with chants and speeches by the Muslim Student Association (MSA), Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO), and UWM SDS.
Nada Moubarak, a member of UWM SDS, echoed the suffering of Palestinians but urged the crowd to not lose hope. “The Palestinian people will persist. They have persisted for centuries and will continue to persist long after you and I are gone.”
Moubarak also introduced a name change campaign SDS will be rolling out in the coming weeks. “We demand UWM change the name of the library. Upholding the Zionist Golda Meir, who denied the very existence of Palestine and its people, is shameful!”
Calls for the university and the U.S. government to stop funding and supporting the Israeli genocide of Palestine rang through the crowd. These demands come in the wake of a Milwaukee family, the Sakallas, losing 50 members of their family in the October 24 bombing of Khan Younis in Gaza.
“A student, here at UWM, just lost 50 members of their family in the bombing of a residential building by Israel,” said Ameen Atta, a member of MSA. “Babies, children, pregnant people, women, the elderly – they are all being murdered indiscriminately by Israel. Just for being Palestinian.”
The students then marched around campus with chants such as, “Free, free Palestine! Long live Palestine!” “We will honor all our martyrs, all our children, sons, and daughters” and “Biden, Biden, you can’t hide, you’re committing genocide!”