Over 200 pro-Palestinian protesters gathered at D.H. Hill Jr. Library on Nov. 9 to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and to discontinue U.S. funding of Israel.
The event was organized by the Arab Student Organization and the Young Democratic Socialists of America.
Jamal Mohamad, a fourth-year studying business administration and president of the Arab Student Organization, said the protest was planned for Nov. 9 to coincide with the “global shutdown for Palestine” day.
“We wanted to take action ourselves and host an action here,” Mohamad said. “Bringing it local is just to spread awareness. Educate people — that’s the main goal.”
The march also was aimed at spreading awareness.
“We must use our voices to amplify theirs, show that we hear their cries,” Mohamad said. “We demand our voices to be heard. We demand an immediate ceasefire. We demand an end to the U.S. government’s funding of genocide. Today, we say, ‘Shut it down.’”
Hashim Ayesh, an NC State alum, said the turnout at the protest has helped him realize he’s not alone during a time when he has felt singled out for supporting Palestine.
“It helps out when I see this, that I’m not alone,” Ayesh said. “There are people who don’t see me as an animal, they don’t see me as a terrorist. They understand that my people are suffering, they understand that my people are being killed and they support me. They support me to speak out, they support me in existing.”
Several attendees wore keffiyehs, a traditional Palestinian scarf with a black and white fishnet pattern. Ayesh said the scarf is mostly associated with rural Palestinians, but has come to represent Palestinian culture as a whole.
“During 1948, it became a symbol of the people because you had the rural Palestinians being affected in the land,” Ayesh said. “You had the grandfather wearing this around his head, carrying in one hand, the bag of all his belongings, and in the other the key to his house that he was leaving. So it’s become a symbol of resistance and a symbol of our culture and identity.”
Advertisements for the protest stated forms of aggression would not be tolerated. Mohamad said this is because it’s important to uphold a certain standard when protesting in the name of Palestine.
“The media tries to paint Palestinians in a negative way,” Mohamad said. “So just making sure that we uphold the standards — we don’t want to look bad. We’re not protesting for a bad cause, so we don’t want our goal to be diminished by non-peaceful protests.”
Nick Pinto, a fifth-year studying genetics and president of the Young Democratic Socialists of America, said participating in the protest is a way of showing solidarity.
“We live in a country where we are taught to stay in your own lane, mind your own business, to not pay attention to even the person right next to you, much less people who live thousands of miles away,” Pinto said. “By being here today, you all are telling the world that solidarity still means something, that we are willing to fight for people we don’t know, that for a person to be free anywhere, all people must be free everywhere.”
Pinto said protesting is important, but there are other ways to stay involved.
“If people can’t go to these protests, they can call their representative,” Pinto said. “Just letting them know that you demand a cease-fire. … I think calling your representative, keeping this in mind for 2024 when you decide how to vote, or whether to abstain. I think staying in the streets and staying talking about it, because it’s very easy for these things to be forgotten and shoved under the rug.”
Mohamad said he encourages students to continue to post on social media and educate others on the conflict.
“What we’re doing today, the Palestinian people need,” Mohamad said. “Make sure you’re able to keep the momentum going. Do not let the voices in Gaza go unheard.”
NC State students chant during the 'Shut it Down! For the Palestine protest Thursday, Nov. 9, 2023. The protest was hosted by NC State's chapter of YDSA, the Young Democratic Socialists of America, and ASO (Arab Student Organization).
