Student organization Students for Justice in Palestine at LSU held a “die-in” protest Thursday on the steps of the LSU Student Union in support of Gaza and demanded the university and state divest from corporations they deemed “pro-Israel.”
A die-in is a form of protest where participants lie on the ground as if they were dead to raise awareness of those who’ve died.
By 11 a.m., the crowd’s chants of “free Palestine” grew loud.
Will Quinlin, an English junior and the action coordinator for SJP at LSU, said they opted to do a die-in protest to “bring attention to the 34,000 dead so far. And the 15,000 children.”
The Palestinian death toll has risen to 34,000 as of April 25, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. Two-thirds are women and children.
What began as a small protest of about 15 people quickly grew as more students stopped to watch and participate. Their chants got louder as the crowd grew to about 80.
“At the very least, we want to establish boycott, divestment and sanction of Israel on every college campus,” Quinlin said.
The members of SJP at LSU say that the violence in Gaza isn’t just a Middle East issue, but a local one as well.
“We are not just here to bring awareness. We’re here to tell the people that you can do something. You can resist change, especially at LSU,” said Ayah Hamdam, president of SJP at LSU and a kinesiology freshman.
All of Louisiana’s U.S. House representatives voted in favor of a bill authorizing $26 billion in aid to Israel, and the Louisiana Senate recently passed a bill voicing the state’s support of Israel.
The state also invested $5 million in Israeli bonds following the outbreak of the conflict in October.
Hamdam said Louisiana’s government should “fix our potholes first.”
Similar protests have broken out on college campuses across the country, calling for an end to support for Israel. Students at Columbia, University of Texas at Austin, Emerson and other universities have initiated protests, leading to mass arrests for trespassing.
When asked if an encampment was possible at LSU, Quinlin said, “It’s probably something we won’t replicate, …but we stand with them.”
