The Sophian

Issue date: 2/12/09 Section: Features

Media Credit: Clare Lynch Five College students and community members joined to rally for peace in Gaza last Saturday.

Traffic on the main street of Amherst slowed to a crawl last Saturday as about 200 students from the Five College area marched down the street chanting, brandishing signs, pumping fists and waving flags. Breath clouding in the frigid air, the marchers shouted sentiments like "Free, free Palestine!" and "One, two, three, four, occupation nevermore!"

The group marched from the University of Massachusetts Haigis Mall to Amherst College to protest the recent Israeli invasion of Gaza and to show support for Palestine. "We can't sit silently while there's so much injustice," said Hampshire sophomore and rally participant Aaron Brame.

The rally was a collaborative effort that brought together organizers from Smith, UMass, Amherst, Hampshire and Mount Holyoke; Arab and non-Arab students; Muslims and non-Muslims; as well as families, religious leaders and community organizers.

Saturday's rally had a good turnout, although it was not as large as the rally immediately following the invasion in Janurary, said Smith student Beth Guthrie '09, one of the organizers.

"The siege [in January] drew a lot of attention," she said. "Now, [with Israel and Gaza working out a ceasefire,] people are complacent." However, Guthrie said, the ceasefire is highly uncertain. "It could explode at any second," she explained. "The situation is more dangerous than it has ever been."

After January's rally, organizers have realized the potential for protestors within the Five College consortium to be more connected, said Hampshire sophomore Alex Cachinero-Gorman. Cachinero-Gorman is a member of Students for Justice in Palestine, one of many college organizations represented at the rally. Others included religious, social justice and anti-war groups.

Ayla Qais '11, president of the Smith student Muslim organization Al-Iman, was one of several Smith students at the rally. "We're here to stand in solidarity with the people of Gaza and bring change," said Qais. "We can do our part."

Change begins with consciousness, said many participants in the rally, who felt that college students were uninformed about the conflict in Israel and Gaza. University of Massachusetts junior Bethan Allam said she hoped the march would bring "acknowledgement" of the problems in Gaza.

Continued...

Page 1 of 3 next >

Article Tools