By The Hub@TTU Staff
LUBBOCK — Texas Tech Students for Justice in Palestine organized a silent, non-disruptive protest in the TTU Library on Wednesday, Jan. 24.
Students who participated displayed posters in support of Palestine as they congregated in study areas. The United Nations’ International Court of Justice on Friday issued an interim ruling directing Israel to do more to protect Palestinians in Gaza and prevent genocide, according to the Associated Press.
“We’re basically giving [students] a resource and the option to get to know more about the conflict has been going on for seventy-five years now,” Adam Matter, a sophomore computer engineering major from Alexandria, Egypt, said at the event. “We’re just making sure that we’re doing our part representing Palestinians and people that can’t be heard right now.”
The case against Israel in the U.N. court was brought by South Africa and resulted in a series of orders to Israel, compelling the nation to do more to protect innocent lives as it carries out its military operation in response to the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack which killed around 1,200 people and resulted in another 250 being kidnapped.
The case marks the first time charges have been laid against Israel for violating the international treaty criminalizing genocide since it was drafted in 1948 in response to the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Although Israeli officials have questioned the death toll reported by the Gaza-based Ministry of Health — an agency controlled by Hamas — the independent charitable confederation Oxfam International reported that an average of 250 Palestinians are killed each day.
The U.N.’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs published a report indicating there were 23,084 reported deaths in Gaza between Oct. 7 and Jan. 24.
Declan Murphy, a second-year PhD student from Ireland, told The Hub that he was inspired to participate in SJP’s demonstration by the anti-apartheid movement of his home country. The choice to hold the demonstration in Tech’s library was made in response to the destruction of sites of cultural significance in the region, such as libraries, universities, archaeological sites, museums and places of worship, among others.
“It’s hard to summarize it, but it’s important to remind people not to forget about Palestine,” a student who wished to be identified as H, said. “It’s not a trend, it’s not a fad, it’s not something that’s going to go away. …it’s important to keep reminding ourselves that it didn’t stop. It didn’t quiet down, it didn’t slow down. It’s still happening.”
Anyone interested in learning more about the group’s mission can follow Students for Justice in Palestine on Instagram. SJP is also encouraging donations on GoFundMe to support its initiatives.
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