Waving signs, flags and chanting, hundreds of vocal students joined a pro-Palestine rally on Cal State L.A.’s campus on Wednesday, May 1.
The demonstration started midday in front of the Golden Eagle statue, outside the bookstore, at the center of campus.
Related: Classes postponed after violence breaks out at UCLA protest
Organizers from different campus groups at the rally said the “emergency mobilization” event was planned specifically for May Day, a day honoring labor struggles and advancement also known as International Workers’ Day. On Instagram, they called the rally “May Day for Palestine,” and said that May Day emphasizes “the connection between the working class and Palestine.”
“Palestinian workers have issued a call to their fellow international worker community to halting the production of weapons worldwide and to stand in solidarity with the people of Palestine,” the organizers wrote. “Fighting for the end of the exploration of workers is critically important, especially because many workers are producing labor for companies that are perpetuating genocides and the killing and surveillance of oppressed and marginalized populations.”
In their demands, Students for Justice in Palestine at Cal State LA called for officials to “divest from the military industrial complex and the “genocidal Zionist regime, Israel,” in hopes of building “a People’s University.”
Just after 2 p.m., around 300 students marched from the campus bookstore to the nearby Billie Jean King statue, which had a Palestine flag zip-tied onto it. A small encampment with 15 tents was being set up on the grass outside of the school’s physical education building. An orange plastic barrier, bolstered by chairs, surrounded participants.
Amal Najjar, a Muslim student in her last semester at Cal State LA, participated in Wednesday’s rally. Najjar, a women’s gender and sexuality studies major, called activism a “social responsibility.”
“There’s not a single college left in Gaza so I’m doing this for all the people that were on their way to getting an education or never will get the chance to do so,” Najjar, 35, said. “Organizing is the least that we can do to honor people that have lost their lives,” she said. “It’s beautiful to see so many people representing anti-genocide, anti-settler colonization, everything.”
There were no signs of police or counter-protestors, and Cal State L.A. officials have not responded to requests for comment as of 4:30 p.m.
In conjunction with their demands, the students have also planned an “Artists 4 Palestine” campaign event on May 10 in Huntington Park.
Related links
UCLA cancels classes, condemnations roll in, after night of violence at pro-Palestinian encampment
Mayor Bass returning to an LA focused on UCLA protests, violence after 3 days in Washington, D.C.
Will more graduations get canceled? Southern California colleges grapple with safety amid Gaza protests
How a Pasadena poet uses the gift of words to help autistic adults process grief — including her own
Old Town Monrovia’s LGBTQ bookstore had high hopes. After repeated abuse, its future is uncertain
This story is developing. Check back for updates.
