Students put on Palestine Awareness Week to educate about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
By Katherine Hafner
Feb. 27, 2012 1:52 a.m.
Correction: The original version of this article contained an error. Members of the pro-Palestinian group will stand silently at the apartheid wall to protest Israeli occupation of West Bank and Gaza, which are disputed Palestinian territories.
A wall bearing inscriptions of artwork, photographs and personal testimonials will be the focal point of the annual Palestine Awareness Week, which kicks off today.
The week, which is organized by Students for Justice in Palestine, is intended to educate students about the Palestinian side of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict while letting students draw their own conclusions on the issue, said the organization’s outreach director and second-year psychology student Dana Saifan.
“It’s not about being pro-Palestine. It’s about being pro-justice,” Saifan said about the week, which is nationally recognized as Israeli Apartheid Week.
Members of the pro-Palestinian group will stand silently at the apartheid wall to protest Israeli occupation of West Bank and Gaza, which are disputed Palestinian territories, and educate interested individuals on the history of the conflict.
The events for the rest of the week include movie screenings, a panel discussion, a culture night, a teach-out and a keynote lecture about the issue.
The pro-Palestinian justice organization finds many parallels between the struggle that the Palestinians face and that of other minority groups, including Chicanos and blacks, and hopes to find solidarity within these groups at events such as the culture night, Saifan said.
Students for Justice in Palestine is organizing twice the number of events this year than in the past to allow the organization the opportunity to present a diverse set of perspectives, Saifan said.
In terms of talks between sides in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, little to no progress or movement has been made recently, said James Gelvin, a professor of history who specializes in Near Eastern studies.
The two main issues of the conflict for the Palestinians are the 750,000 Palestinian refugees starting with the 1948 Palestine War and the continued Israeli occupation of the West Bank since 1967, Gelvin said.
The occupation is internationally recognized as illegal, Gelvin said.
Bruins for Israel will provide a presence on campus this week as well. Tomer Schwartz, president of Bruins for Israel and a fourth-year biochemistry student, said this is as a way to counterbalance the negativity some members of the organization feel as a result of the apartheid wall. For many pro-Israel individuals and groups on campus, the wall can be uncomfortable and shocking, Schwartz said.
“We are going to stand out there to peacefully counter-protest and show people that there is a whole other side to the issue than what (Students for Justice in Palestine) is putting up on that wall,” Schwartz said. “This is a very emotional and complicated situation so we feel that both sides should be represented out there.”
In terms of telling both sides of the story, however, Gelvin said Palestine Awareness Week itself is “essential.” He pointed out that pro-Israel groups celebrate their independence day every year.
“There’s no reason the other side of the story shouldn’t also be told on campus,” he said.
