Election wins prove pro-Palestine US campus protests didn’t fail: Activists
With Columbia University set to be represented in Congress by former protester, advocates see ‘new wave of hope’. Over the past year, it may have
With Columbia University set to be represented in Congress by former protester, advocates see ‘new wave of hope’. Over the past year, it may have appeared that the pro-Palestine protest movement in the United States has lost momentum in the face of smears, crackdowns, indifference and fatigue. But a string of electoral wins by critics of Israeli abuses appears to indicate that activism’s success can only be measured in the long term. In New York, Darializa Avila Chevalier, an activist who participated in the pro-Palestine protests at Columbia University, won a Democratic congressional primary against a five-term incumbent. “It’s just so satisfying to feel like the tide is finally turning,” said Maryam Alwan, who participated in the Columbia protest in 2024. “Public opinion has shifted to a point where it’s unavoidable and undeniable, and I think we’re finally starting to see the ripple effects of movements like the encampment that happened two years ago.” Avila Chevalier’s win was one of several victories for pro-Palestine candidates in New York last week. Last year, Zohran Mamdani was elected mayor of New York City, in part thanks to the efforts of young pro-Palestine activists who powered his campaign. In Colorado on Tuesday, Melat Kiros, who was fired from her law firm in 2023 for a letter defending Palestinian rights supporters from accusations of anti-Semitism, ousted a House member who had been in Congress for nearly 30 years.
Candidates backed by supporters of Palestinian rights also won key races in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Columbia case Avila Chevalier’s victory especially stands out in the context of the long-term impact of the student protests. The democratic socialist nominee, who is likely to cruise to victory in a safe Democratic district in November, will represent large parts of Columbia University’s campus, where it all started. Witnessing horrific atrocities in Gaza that were partly funded by their own government, students at Columbia set up the first encampment in support of Palestinians, kick-starting a national movement. Students nationwide then turned their campuses into a front line for political activism against Israel’s genocidal war on Palestinians. Dozens of encampments sprang up on campuses across the country in 2024 and chants of “free Palestine” rang out in schools from Seattle to Miami. The students demanded an end to their own schools’ complicity in Israel’s abuses. They called for divestment from Israeli companies and weapons manufacturers. A security crackdown soon ensued, leading to the arrest of hundreds of students and the removal of encampments. Avila Chevalier herself was arrested in 2024 as an alumna taking part in the protests. Many students faced academic disciplinary action and others were charged with alleged crimes related to the protests as politicians from both major parties portrayed the movement as anti-Semitic.
The BriefWire