Grinnell College students stage protest walkout in support of Palestine

GRINNELL, Iowa — Hundreds of Grinnell College students staged a walkout on Wednesday morning to express solidarity ​​with Palestine and demand that the college stop any financial support of Israeli apartheid.

Demonstrators gathered in the Humanities and Social Studies Center to hear student organizers call for a ceasefire before marching to Nollen House to deliver the demands to college administrators.

Students carried signs reading “FREE PALESTINE” and “Zionism is white supremacy” and chanted “Netanyahu, you can’t hide, we charge you with genocide,” in reference to Israel’s prime minister.

Grinnell Students for Justice in Palestine organized the walkout to demand an end to the siege of Gaza and U.S. military funding and arms to Israel. The walkout at Grinnell was part of an international day of demonstrations facilitated by the Palestinian Youth Movement, an organization with more than 200 college chapters in America and Canada.

Grinnell SJP leaders distributed to demonstrators a list of demands for the college, asking students, alumni, faculty, staff and community members to apply coordinated, unified pressure on the administration and trustees.

The demands included more transparency from Grinnell on its investments and immediate divestment from any and all investments that financially support Israel or its military, pointing to Grinnell’s history as one of the first academic institutions to divest from South African apartheid.

Students also insisted that Grinnell release a statement acknowledging the “genocidal violence” and “ethnic cleansing of Palestinians” and calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and an end to U.S. military aid to Israel. Students urged that a scholarship fund be created for Palestinian students and more Palestinian scholarship incorporated into course curricula.

“We cannot call ourselves a socially just institution while continuing to stay silent in the face of Israeli apartheid and oppression,” wrote Grinnell SJP.

The Israel-Hamas war: A backdrop

Israel formally declared war against Hamas Oct. 7 after the Islamist militant group fired rockets into Israel and stormed southern Israeli cities, killing and injuring thousands of soldiers and civilians and taking more 200 hostages.

The Israeli military responded with counter-attacks and a siege of Gaza, halting the supply of electricity, food, water and fuel to the Palestinian enclave.

Grinnell SJP leaders wrote in a statement of solidarity on Oct. 11 that “peace is contingent on lifting the blockade, ending the illegal Israeli occupation, and dismantling the Israeli apartheid state,” adding that “there can be no peace without Palestinian liberation.”

Recently, President Biden requested a $106 billion national security package that includes $14 billion to help Israel defend itself against Hamas. Biden is hoping that bundling aid for Israel and Ukraine will increase the likelihood of passage through a Congress increasingly divided on aid packages. Included in the administration’s request is $10 billion for humanitarian relief for Israel, Gaza and Ukraine.

Tensions rise in US colleges over Israel-Palestine stances

The demonstration at Grinnell came at a time when tensions are high between students, administrators, donors and lawmakers across the United States.

Prominent Harvard University alumni recently denounced a pro-Palestinian statement signed by 34 student organizations that held the Israeli government “entirely responsible for all unfolding violence.” Some alumni also threatened to stop donations unless the university took action against the signatories.

Similar controversies have played out at other colleges, including three Ivy League students losing job offers after their employers learned of their pro-Palestinian and, in some cases, pro-Hamas stances.

In Florida, governor and Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis ordered the State University System of Florida on Oct. 24 to shut down chapters of SJP.

In Iowa, Republican Sen. Joni Ernst advocated for the federal defunding of some colleges that are “promoting antisemitism.”

Grinnell College administration responds to the protest

The promotion of the walkout Tuesday through Grinnell platforms prompted a response from the administration Wednesday morning. At least one member of Grinnell SJP sent emails to numerous student organization distribution lists, encouraging students to participate in the walkout.

Grinnell President Anne Harris wrote in an all-campus email sent Wednesday that “the college does not endorse the content of these communications.”

“As an institution, we affirm the right to assembly and support free speech and expression in the form of protest and demonstration,” Harris wrote. “We simultaneously have responsibilities to each other. We have a responsibility to sustain an environment free from harassment and discrimination.”

Grinnell College has not released a statement on the Israeli-Hamas conflict since Oct. 9, when Harris shared a message mourning the loss of life on both sides.

Grinnell SJP leaders encouraged students to contact the College’s Board of Trustees and continue demonstrating support for Palestine moving forward.

The S&B requested comment from Harris and was directed to Ellen de Graffenreid, vice president of communications and marketing. De Graffenreid said Harris was traveling and referred the S&B to Harris’ email sent on Wednesday morning.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Grinnell College students rally for Palestine