A sensible protest? Pro-Palestinian students at Fresno State show it’s possible | Opinion

Fresno State students, faculty and a few community activists held a sensible protest to demonstrate their pro-Palestinian support and solidarity.

Yeah, I know. Those two words — “sensible” and “protest” — are incongruous. They certainly can’t be used to describe the turmoil and upheaval that took place recently on university campuses across the country.

But unlike student protests at UCLA, Columbia and elsewhere, Fresno State’s on Wednesday was organized as a sit-in rather than an occupation. No one brought tents or erected barricades. Rather, they gathered around the Speaker’s Platform near the library to exercise their right to free speech and peaceful assembly for a few hours before disbanding.

There was no police presence. Neither campus police, nor the Fresno PD made themselves visible. The few counter-protesters in attendance opted not to insert themselves. Even the person who showed up with a video camera wearing a Donald Trump mask.

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Protest organizers, a group calling itself Students for the Liberation of Palestine at Fresno State, released a statement on social media criticizing the university for “fail(ing) to stand with its students against injustice and ongoing genocide” in Gaza.

But when President Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval made a brief appearance to mingle with student protesters, he was warmly received.

“I’m not here for the media,” Jiménez-Sandoval said when he spotted me standing nearby. “I’m here for my students.”

Fresno State’s sensible protest stood in marked contrast not only to the other pro-Palestinian demonstrations, but also to the university’s tumultuous history. The campus was a hotbed of activism during the 1960s and 1970s as students marched for civil rights and against the Vietnam War.

Back then, anti-war students hung President Richard Nixon in effigy and erupted in anger after several Black and Latino professors were fired. On May 22, 1970, protesters busted windows as they ran through campus before setting up a blockade on Shaw Avenue. Dozens were arrested. One was later convicted for fire-bombing the $1 million computer laboratory.

It’s not just baby boomer history, either. As recently as 2010, students camped out at the library to protest its limited hours due to budget cuts and showed up at then-President John Welty’s doorstep for a Saturday morning study hall.

‘Don’t ruin this for everyone please’

Why was Fresno State’s pro-Palestinian protest so peaceful and somewhat staid when compared to what’s going on around the country?

One reason, probably the largest, is intention. Organizers (led by a young woman named Haneen born and raised in the Occupied Territories) advertised Wednesday’s gathering as a peaceful sit-in with no megaphones or speakers permitted.

“Don’t ruin this for everyone please,” the Instagram post said. “Remain peaceful.”

Fresno State students of Palestinian heritage are also fairly small in number. (Though it should be stated that demonstrators represented many ethnicities, and not just Arabs.)

Another reason, endorsed by English lit professor John Beynon and others, is that many Fresno State undergrads come from modest means and hold down multiple jobs to afford the $3,600-per-semester tuition and the rising cost of living.

Not to overly generalize their counterparts at UCLA and Columbia as rich kids from deep-pocketed families, but protesting is a privilege.

“I think there is something to be said for what you might call the luxury of being able to demonstrate,” Beynon said. “It’s a feeling of, ‘I know that if I go to jail my parents are going to bail me out’ or ‘I know I can afford an expensive lawyer.’

“I’m not trying to downplay anyone’s activism, but it’s a different situation when you know you have to show up to a job or watch your sister’s kids.”

‘A chapter in somebody’s history’

Just because Fresno State students didn’t occupy campus or get themselves arrested doesn’t mean they are any less devoted to their cause.

In fact, I’d argue the message is clearer and more convincing when not clouded by headline-grabbing clashes that, let’s be honest, are somewhat performative.

The hard, cold truth is that protests rarely result in actual policy shifts. Even this week, after all that’s happened, University of California and Cal State University officials both rejected calls to cut ties with Israel or divest investments in that country.

Does that mean all this is pointless? Absolutely not.

Change doesn’t happen in an instant; nor is it always readily apparent. And even protests that fail to achieve their desired outcome can still result in personal growth.

“This is going to be a chapter in somebody’s history,” said Beynon, who protested against the U.S. bombing of Libya in the 1980s and the first Gulf War.

“I do think it’s very easy to dismiss a political movement or uprising that doesn’t result in what seemed to be the intent. But I’m still hopeful change is occurring, even in ways we can’t see.”

Good sense prevailed at Fresno State’s first pro-Palestinian protest. Students, faculty and administrators showed it can be done.