Students have returned to their college campuses for classes, clubs, and, if you’re a student at Georgetown University in D.C., maybe a protest or two.
Several hundred pro-Palestine protesters marched through Georgetown University Wednesday evening shouting “there is only one solution, intifada revolution.”
“Intifada” is an Arabic word meaning “shaking off” or “uprising” and, as defined by Merriam-Webster, means “an armed uprising of Palestinians against Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.”
Asked if Israel has the right to exist, Georgetown University student Miriam Siegel, who is also Jewish and a part of the group Jewish Voice for Peace, told The Daily Signal, “I personally do not believe that any nation-state has the right to exist.”
Pro-Palestine marches took place on the D.C. college campus during the spring, and protest leaders told the crowd that their movement is back and “stronger than ever.”
Speaking through a megaphone, a student organizer expressed how happy she was to be back protesting and in a crowd with so many people “wearing a keffiyeh,” which is a scarf that is now seen as a symbol of solidarity with the Palestinians.
But not all Georgetown students were pleased with the protest taking place on their campus.
“The martyrs are suicide bombers,” a student told The Daily Signal, “and she’s chanting ‘honor the martyrs,’” she said, gesturing toward a protest leader.
Asked if she believes Georgetown University students understand what happened on Oct. 7th, the student said, “yes, most students do and that’s why 99.9% of Georgetown students are not here right now.”
About 20,000 students attend Georgetown University where tuition runs over $60,000 a year with an acceptance rate of 12%, according to U.S. News and World Report.
Pro-Palestine protests broke out on college campuses across the country following Hamas’ terrorist attack on Israel last October. Israel declared war on Hamas following the attack that left 1,200 Israelis dead. Palestinian health authorities say 40,000 people have been killed in the fighting since Oct. 8. This number cannot be verified.
Students established a pro-Palestine encampment at George Washington University, two miles from Georgetown University, during the spring semester.
“Were using a diversity of tactics,” Siegel told The Daily Signal when asked if a pro-Palestine encampment would be established at Georgetown University this fall. “I think Georgetown needs to know that where there is oppression, there will be escalation. It could happen anywhere,” the student said.