Harvard pro-Palestine students rally with 'Long Live Intifada' chant

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Israeli media
7 Sep 2024 13:38

The chants commemorate the Palestinian people's December 8, 1987, Intifada, during which Palestinians initiated to defend their land from the Israeli occupation.

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A banner was hung on the Harvard University gate with the slogan "Harvard Funds Genocide" on May 23, 2024 (@HarvardOOP / X)

At Harvard University on Friday, pro-Palestine protesters marched through campus chanting “Long live the intifada” and “Globalize the intifada.”

Their demonstration, occurring just three days after classes started, underscored that tensions remain high. Students have gathered and reconnected, while university officials have started taking measures to control the protests and implement a proactive crackdown.

The chants highlight the Palestinian people's December 8, 1987, Intifada, during which Palestinians initiated to defend their land, principles, and sanctities from the Israeli occupation.

And then, in the early 1990s and again in the early 2000s, thousands of Palestinians were killed, further solidifying the Intifada as a symbol of their struggle and sacrifices and inspiring generations to come.

'Disclose and divest'

The protest at Harvard was held under heavy police presence, according to the Harvard Crimson. The newspaper reported that the 80-person march, organized by Harvard Out of Occupied Palestine (HOOP), concluded with a rally outside a campus building. There, interim university president Alan Garber met with HOOP representatives to discuss their demand for Harvard to divest from "Israel".

“No matter what the university says or does, our demands have always been crystal clear: Disclose and divest,” HOOP organizer Tamar Sella was quoted as saying. “These meetings were never the end goal of our campaign.”

Garber had agreed to the meeting in May as part of his efforts to peacefully resolve the university’s pro-Palestine encampment. HOOP did not comment on the outcome of the meeting, and Harvard also declined to provide comments, according to the Crimson.

The demonstration included speakers criticizing the university’s decision to discipline students involved in the encampment. The Crimson reported that five students from the 20-day encampment were suspended and over 20 were put on probation.

Harvard and other prestigious US universities have become focal points for pro-Palestinian activity amid the ongoing Israeli war on Gaza, which so far killed more than 40,800 thousand Palestinians mostly women and children.