University protests in US signal decline of Zionism
By Zohreh Qanadi
Staff writer
Pro-Palestinian protests are sweeping through prestigious American universities over the ongoing conflict in Gaza weeks ahead of graduation ceremonies, challenging the influence of the Zionist lobby.
With the death toll nearing 35,000 in the seven-month war in the besieged strip and still rising, tent encampments of protesters that demand universities to cease business with Israel and companies supporting the Gaza war have spread across the US. The resulting police crackdown on some campuses evokes memories of the larger student protest movements during the Vietnam War era.
At the moment, American universities are still grappling with clearing out encampments. While some institutions are continuing negotiations, others are resorting to using force and issuing ultimatums, which has often resulted in clashes with police. The number of arrests at campuses nationwide surpasses 2,000.
The response to these pro-Palestinian protests from politicians and University administrators, faculty, and students has roiled college campuses and divided the American public. Tensions are running high as students and activists on both sides of the issue have engaged in heated debates and confrontations. The protests have sparked discussions on free speech, political activism, and the role of universities in addressing contentious global issues. In addition to condemning the US policies toward Israel and Palestine, including censuring the US’ unwavering support for the Israeli regime, the issue of the violation of free speech — enshrined in the First Amendment of the US Constitution — has now been raised.
Zionists unsettled
While these pro-Palestinian protests challenge the US administration’s policies, they appear to frighten its ally, Israel, too. Here is a look at why the student revolt could unsettle the Zionists, headed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
What particularly worries Zionism is the surge of this student revolution across American campuses and its potential spread to universities elsewhere, including Europe, where other Israeli allies exist.
On Friday, German police broke up a pro-Palestinian demonstration at Humboldt University, arresting several protesters and university students. The group had staged a sit-in in front of the university’s main building in central Berlin, shouting slogans such as “Free Gaza”, “Israel is a fascist state,” and “Germany, stop arms shipments to Israel”.
In what is perhaps the most significant student movement since the anti-Vietnam campus protests of the late 1960s, the conflict between pro-Palestinian students and university administrators in the US has revealed an entire subset of conflicts. The widespread movement across American campuses and its potential global impact signal a significant shift in public opinion on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
These protests show that the Israeli violence in the Gaza conflict has undermined Netanyahu’s major accomplishment of controlling public opinion. The explosion of this recent uprising may eventually lead to the overthrow of the apartheid Israeli cabinet. Demonstrators have vowed to continue until their demands for US educational bodies to disentangle from companies profiting from the conflict are met.
Peaceful movement
Israel has always thrived on victimhood narratives and relied on stories like the Holocaust and antisemitism throughout its decades-old existence. While Israel’s actions in Gaza have tarnished its image as a victim, the Palestine cause has become a current issue within the United States and a focal point of political conflict between generations in the struggle to revive the values of justice and freedom and to halt genocidal wars and racism in all its forms.
Meanwhile, some Jewish students have expressed concerns that the protests have crossed into antisemitism, leaving them apprehensive about stepping foot on campus. US President Joe Biden has also joined congressional voices on both sides of the aisle, calling the protests antisemitic.
Rejecting the accusation, students at the protest have said some counter-protesters attempted to instigate hate speech but insisted their event was peaceful and was aimed at drawing attention to the “genocide” in Gaza and the complicity of their universities in the war.
US to be freed
from Zionism
The other main cause for Zionist concern could be that this revolution has started in prestigious American universities such as Columbia University in New York — the city that is a stronghold of the Zionist lobby — and Harvard University in Boston. This suggests that the future generations of the US may not be influenced by Zionism like their fathers and ancestors were.
The protests at Columbia have been organized by Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD), which describes itself as a coalition of more than 100 student groups. Founded in 2016, it unsuccessfully sought to end investments by Columbia University in weapons manufacturers and other companies that support Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories.
Students of Columbia University, including those of Jewish, Muslim, and Palestinian descent, reactivated the coalition and its divestment demands after Hamas’ deadly attack on Israel on October 7 and Israel’s over-the-top response in the Gaza enclave controlled by Hamas.
According to British journalist and editor Abdel Bari Atwan, “These students who are subjected to suppression and detention by the US government are not from the ordinary class of the American society; rather, they are the children of congressmen, senators, businessmen, and the ruling political class in the country. In fact, these students will be the new leaders of the US.”
Now, this phenomenal wave of protests in solidarity with Palestinians and against Israel’s devastating war on Gaza is expanding across the globe, proving that Zionism is in process of decline.