John,
Student protestors are bravely taking a stand in support of Palestine, despite rising repression. We’re seeing it on college campuses across the country, including my alma mater Columbia University.
I’ve been talking with a number of student activists recently, and each time, I am amazed at their courage, willingness to take risks, and most importantly, their understanding of how climate change, the U.S. military, and the displacement and persecution of Palestinians are linked together.
Students are connecting the dots between their university trustees — often leaders in global finance and private equity — who are mining the planet, arming the Israeli military, and funding wars that result in millions of tons of carbon emissions each year.
For those of us at 350.org, these issues are all connected. When supporters like you helped launch the divestment movement, we knew the key to a changed planet was to cut off their finances. We also knew that the issues do not exist in a vacuum. As we stood against the Dakota Access Pipeline at Standing Rock, we targeted Wells Fargo with the understanding that their financing of the pipeline was one part of the same business that invests in private prisons and forecloses on private homes.
As someone 30-plus years removed from college, I can only imagine the pressure and risk any given student is taking to occupy their campus. There’s the arrest itself, which carries varying levels of risk depending on a student’s background and immigration status. And there’s also the fact that universities now threaten suspension, expulsion, and loss of educational opportunities that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. I often wonder, what can we do in the face of this kind of opposition?
One thing we can do is stand in solidarity with the students and call out universities on social media for persecuting their own students. Social media is a powerful platform — and universities, like politicians and other powerful figures, are sensitive to public opinion.
Will you take a second to tweet at the leadership of Columbia, UCLA, CUNY, and UT Austin right now?
We all need to think about what we can learn from these courageous students about the risk and commitment required to change the world. They are facing brutal police forces in addition to the financial and reputational risk of sacrificing their education. But they do it because they know their cause is just – and we need to stand in solidarity with them.
The mass murders of children in Gaza are a symptom of a broken system — and we all have a responsibility to take action. We appreciate the students leading the way, and we must always remember that the money and power behind the guns in Gaza are the same money and power repressing activists in Uganda and Appalachia who are fighting pipelines in their communities.
Together we can take them on and create a better, more just world for future generations.
— Jeff Ordower, 350.org
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