On Tuesday April 23, University of Sydney student and staff activists commenced their first day of a campout in support of encampments at Columbia University and Barnard College, who are protesting institutional complicity in the genocide in Gaza. The Gaza Solidarity Encampment tents taking place in the US have been put up for almost one week, following police removal and the arrest of over 100 Columbia students.
Many universities around the US have followed suit in organising their protests, including Yale University, the University of Michigan, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of California Berkeley, Washington University, Vanderbilt University, The New School, Emerson College, Tufts University, UNC Chapel Hill, and New York University. According to the Vanderbilt Divest Coalition, students have been occupying areas on their campus since March 26.
Tonight, USyd student activists commenced a speak out at 5:30pm to begin their encampment efforts. By this time, tents were already pitched, emblazoned with graffiti reading “Free Palestine” and “from the river to the sea”. Students from Macquarie University, UTS, and UNSW were also in attendance.
The speak out was led by Jasmine and Shovan, two USyd student activists, who introduced Nadeena Dixon, a Wiradjuri, Yuin and Gadigal artist and activist who performed a Welcome to Country ceremony.
The first speaker, Rand, said that this encampment is “not just an idea, but a reality” and emphasised that we need to create our political education amidst USyd’s ties to Israel. Rand noted the presence of the NTEU and SRC at the encampment, stating that “from Gadigal to Gaza, Palestine and all Indigenous people will be free”. She then cited the importance of BDS in rendering Israel a “pariah state”, and as someone who was born in “so-called Israel”, that it is “not a normal country”.
Federal Greens senator David Shoebridge said that he was proud to attend and see so many students “putting their connection to the university on the line”. Shoebridge condemned the university’s connection to weapons manufacturers such as Thales, stating that “you cannot take money from weapons manufacturers in an ethical system.”
Shoebridge then asked the university to “let peaceful protests happen on campuses” and not “make the mistakes of US universities” who brought in security and police forces on their students.
Jasmine denounced the partnership with weapons manufacturers who “do their dirty research here and make students be a part of that”, in particular the partnerships with Israeli universities that “take part in occupying Palestinian land.”
Josh Lees from Palestine Action Group spoke of his time at the University of Sydney over 20 years ago reflecting on anti-imperial protests against the US’s involvement in several wars including Iraq and Afghanistan.
Lees warned of the planned Rafah invasion, and “a potential regional war… if Israel’s carnage in Gaza is to spread further”. He also recognised that Israeli military activities in Gaza, the West Bank and Jerusalem are a “continuation of the foundations that Israel was built on” and that the current genocide has been “escalated, accelerated, backed and funded by governments of the world.”
When referencing the rallying support of universities, Lees hopes that “this example spread[s] around the world, not just the US” as well as “to see it spread throughout Australia.”
Honi Soit spoke to SRC President Harrison Brennan before the protest and attributed the protests as being “in support” of the action taken by universities across the US. Brennan called out USyd’s OLE: Experience Israel, and partnerships with weapons manufacturer Thales, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv University.
Brennan told Honi that “the security had seen that we were having a meeting early today and decided to lock all the gates straight away before the speak out even started”.
When asked how long the encampment is projected to last for, Brennan said, “as long as possible” but affirmed “we are not leaving until USyd divests”.
Many chants that were used on US campuses in the past week were repeated at the encampment tonight like “disclose, divest, we will not stop, we will not rest” followed by “Albanese/Sydney Uni you will see, Palestine will be free”, and “Mark Scott you can’t hide, you’re supporting genocide”.
Jasmine concluded by saying that “our liberation is tied up with liberation of all oppressed people across the world”, and commended the “bravery and heroism of Palestinians who refuse to leave” their homes, despite the threat of “their lands taken over by the Israeli occupation”.
After the speakout, attendees were encouraged to spread the word, and join the encampment, day or night, to keep “building up this occupation”.
More to come.
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