Dallas College Richland campus Muslim Student Association held a peaceful protest named the Walk for Palestine on Nov. 21.
As an open to the public event, members of the Muslim Student Association as well as others in support of the freeing of Palestine chanted and walked around the inner pathway of the Richland campus for two hours. The group was led in chants by the association’s chief officers, though throughout the event many were able to voice themselves using a megaphone, leading the rest of the members with their voice and movements.
“The primary objective of the walk was to convey our message to every student at Richland College. Some individuals may choose not to educate themsleves simply because they are unwilling to go out of their way to do so. By being directly in front of them during the walk, we aimed to provide a compelling oppurtunity for them to learn,” Ahmad Elsafadi said during an interview.
An informational poster board was presented alongside the protestors, detailing statistics and information about the effects the Israel-Hamas conflict has had on the people of Palestine. Onlookers sat as the crowd of supporters chanted to the words of members from the protest as well as Malak Elkady, the association’s president and editor-at-large of the Richland Chronicle, Ali Silat, vice president, Aya El-sawa, social media manager, Ahmad Elsafadi, senator of the Student Government Association, and Leen Al-Jame, the association’s event coordinator. Al-Jame was moved to tears during her directing of the protest. This protest was one example of many public demonstrations across college campuses, community centers, and other U.S. public venues both big and small. Two especially large demonstrations were held at the U.S. Capitol in Washington supporting both sides of the Israel-Hamas war.
The protesters supporting Palestinians want a more permanent and less fickle ceasefire to be called, criticizing Israel’s military action within the Gaza territory and the United States’ military aid to Israel. Protesters in favor of Israel are concerned about antisemitism and the safety of Jewish people in the conflict and worldwide because of antisemitism, as well as demanding the release of hostages currently being held by Hamas.
For both sides, these protests serve to increase awareness on the state of the conflict. As a result, tensions have increased between those in favor of Palestine and those in favor of Israel in terms of their efforts in the war, with people in major cities concerned that conflicts between both groups of supporters could emerge.
