On Sept. 18 and 19, a dozen protesters gathered each day outside the McKimmon Center to protest companies present at the Engineering Career Fair. They distributed flyers and displayed signs opposing select companies participating in the fair that they said provide equipment and weaponry to the Israel Defense Forces.
Ennis Wells, a fourth-year studying communication and political science and co-chair of Young Democratic Socialists of America, said the group was protesting the fair because of concerns over the products and profits of the represented companies.
“We’re outside the Engineering Career Fair because NC State has invited a lot of companies that are very complicit in profiting from the current genocide happening in Palestine,” Wells said. “There’s a lot of weapons companies here, surveillance companies, and we really think that students shouldn’t be working for them and helping them with the genocide because it’s against international law.”
The protest comes amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. According to AP News, Israel is believed to have carried out attacks in Lebanon, resulting in casualties among Hezbollah members and civilians. Gaza’s Health Ministry reports more than 41,000 Palestinian deaths since Oct. 7, while 1,139 Israelis were killed in the initial Hamas attack.
Protesters held signs reading “NC State will not make your bombs” and “Wolfpack against the war machine,” along with a banner stating “Resist Recruitment,” featuring Palestinian flags.
“People want to be a cog in the machine and not think about it, think that it’s ok, but I really don’t think it’s ok,” Wells said. “I think if you’re aware of what’s happening, you should be doing something about it. Your labor is where you’re going to be spending a lot of your life, so you shouldn’t be doing it for something that’s killing other people and not making the world better. You can find somewhere else to work. You can find a good life for yourself.”
Nathaniel Dibble, a third-year studying political science and an officer with the Young Democratic Socialists of America, was among those handing out flyers. Dibble, who was arrested at a similar protest in February, said all charges against him were dropped. He filed a Title VI complaint against NC State in April, citing racism and Islamophobia in the case of his arrest and another arrest in May.
Dibble said students may not recognize the involvement that the United States and U.S. companies have in foreign affairs.
“We recognize that the practices that the U.S. takes part in, which are genocide and the oppression of lower class people is not popular,” Dibble said. “As a result, we need to make sure that in our education systems, in our media, in every aspect of our lives, we are pushing this idea of capitalism and empire as a good thing. For a lot of people that is ingrained in them.”
Inside the career fair, 292 companies were recruiting students, Caterpillar being among them. Caterpillar sells Israel armored bulldozers that are used to clear the way for defense forces.
Brian Beggs, a 2004 NC State alum who studied mechanical engineering and now works for Caterpillar, said the company had met with over 300 potential recruits during the fair. When asked about Caterpillar’s involvement in international conflicts, Beggs declined to comment.
Some students attending the career fair expressed support for the companies present. Caleb Garner, a first-year studying engineering, said he believed the students and companies at the fair had good intentions.
“I think that people here are actually putting in the work to try to get a decent career with decent companies,” Garner said. “And I think that the companies in here do more good than they do bad.”
