Left Spot Student Movement Blog

From Fight Back News: (see link for photos)

‘Closed for Business’
NC Students Arrested at Anti-War Sit-In

By Kosta Harlan

Chapel Hill, NC - Six students were arrested at Congressman David Price’s office Feb. 17 for holding a sit-in against the Iraq war. 40 people held a picket line outside while the students locked arms and occupied the office, demanding that Price vote against Bush’s Iraq war supplemental funding bill and oppose any aggression, including military action or sanctions, against Iran. Similar actions are taking place across the country in a campaign of pressure on Congress to end the U.S. occupation of Iraq.

David Price voted against going to war in 2002, but only after he was forced to take a stand by the pressure from protests, petitions and an office occupation by students that led to three arrests. Since then, Price has repeatedly stated he has always been opposed to the war, but like many other Democrats, refuses to take any effective action to end it. Specifically, Price says he will not vote to cut off war funding as this would “not support the troops.”

A statement from the organizers of the protest, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), said:

“The Democratic Party won the 2006 midterm elections on the basis of mass opposition to the war. Now, three months later, they are betraying the anti-war mandate handed down by the people on November 7th and escalating this criminal war, which has already resulted in the deaths of over 650,000 Iraqis and 3,000 young Americans. Any politician who claims to be against the war has to prove it. We demand concrete, immediate, effective action - not lukewarm resolutions about “phased withdrawal” or “troop redeployment.” We want all funding cut off and the troops out NOW, and we will hold the politicians’ feet to the fire until the will of the people is met!”

Inside the office, David Price’s aides talked to the student protesters, took notes during the discussion and asked questions. When the students refused to leave without a guarantee that Price would vote against funding for the Iraq war, the aides called the police. Within 30 minutes the police began to haul away the students, one at a time. Meanwhile a banner that read, “Closed for business” was unfurled from the roof of Price’s office while protesters on the picket line chanted loudly in support of the detained protesters.

Alisan Fathalizadeh was reading the SDS statement to the press and Price’s aides when Chapel Hill police broke her lock with the other activists and handcuffed her. It was Fathalizadeh’s first time being arrested at a protest. Asked how she felt about the demonstration afterwards, she said, “This is the least we can do. It’s nothing compared to all the anguish and suffering that people in Iraq are dealing with, the people who are seeing others die everyday.”

Fathalizadeh continued, “We are fed up with the system - and with the old tactics. We’ve petitioned, we’ve done rallies; we’ve even had members of the community go directly to Price and talk to him, to express our concerns in a more ‘civil’ manner. But this demonstration shows how much we are fed up with what’s going on. It’s horrible that it’s come down to this, but it shows how big the problem is and how it needs to be changed now. We won’t wait any longer.”

All six students were released on bail and are scheduled to appear in court on March 26 at 9:00 a.m. in Hillsborough.

In the meantime, UNC-Chapel Hill SDS and antiwar activists in the area plan to increase the pressure on David Price and other elected officials until they respond to the people’s demands.

Reprinted from Fight Back News:

North Carolina:
Students Rally Against Anti-Arab Hate Crime

By Staff

Greensboro, NC - Students from colleges across North Carolina rallied Feb. 2 against a recent hate crime committed against three Palestinian students at Guilford College. The regional protest was organized by Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) chapters at University of North Carolina-Asheville and UNC Chapel Hill.

The three Palestinian students at Guilford College were attacked and beaten by fifteen Guilford football players on Jan. 20. The victims, Faris Khadar, Osama Sabbah and Omar Awartani, were residence neighbors with the assailants and had no history of violence. They were kicked and beaten with fists, bricks and brass knuckles, while being called ‘terrorists’ and ‘sand n___’ among other racial slurs. One received nerve damage in his hand, another a fractured nose, and the third a fractured jaw, according to the students’ attorney. Only five of the fifteen alleged assailants were arrested.

Following the brutal attack, Guilford students took it upon themselves to organize a mass walk-out in protest of the attack and to call for justice. Bryan Dellinger, one of the student organizers, explained how the unplanned protest came together.

“There were about eight core people who organized the walk-out,” said Dellinger. “It was on the 25th of January, and around 300 students total walked out in protest. It was an opportunity for everyone - students, faculty and community members - for people to share their thoughts and feelings about what happened. It was a really positive experience.”

A week later, SDS chapters and other progressive organizations at UNC-Asheville and UNC-Chapel Hill were quick to mobilize local actions on their campuses. Calling for an end to anti-Arab attacks and discrimination, SDSers handed out flyers, discussed ways to show solidarity to Guilford students and demand action from the administration.

“We will not tolerate violence or bigotry in our communities,” said Haley Koch, of the UNC-Chapel Hill Solidarity with Palestine through Education and Action at Carolina. “We want to send a clear message of compassion, solidarity and inclusion to marginalized communities in North Carolina, the United States and across the globe.”

As of yet, there still has been no timely response of the Guilford administration in determining whether the attack qualifies as a hate crime or not. The case is being tried in the Guilford Judicial Board and may take several weeks longer for results. Greensboro police have stated that they dropped their investigation due to supposed lack of evidence.

Students in North Carolina and across the country have voiced strong opposition to attacks on oppressed nationalities. In the wake of 911 and the ongoing Iraq War, anti-Arab hate crimes and Islamophobia have risen throughout the U.S. and must be countered with mass mobilization, education and protest. Swift justice is needed for those who are the victims of such oppression.

If you would like to help, please call or contact the Guilford College president’s office at 336-316-2146 to demand a swift and thorough investigation.