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Oct. 7, 2024, marked one year since Israel declared “war” on Palestine following an attack by Hamas earlier that day. Although many news outlets and Zionists have painted the conflict to have started on Oct. 7, 2023, the history of the Palestinian struggle for sovereignty extends over 75 years. At least 42,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israel’s onslaught, though some consider this estimate conservative given the number of missing people yet to be found under building rubble; higher estimates put the death toll at over 121,000, according to a study done by the Watson Institute for Public Affairs at Brown University.
In commemoration of the one-year anniversary of October 7, supporters organized and attended countless events last week in protest of the United States’ active funding of Israel’s genocide in Palestine, and bombing campaigns in Lebanon, Syria and Yemen.
On Oct. 6, 2024, one day before the first anniversary of October 7, supporters gathered by the thousands in Boston Public Garden to demand justice for Palestine. The diverse crowd consisted of children, protestors in wheelchairs, Jewish protestors, and Boston’s students, workers, and families—all united in their call for action.
At 1 p.m. on Sunday, the Boston Public Garden was transformed by solidarity. The Parkman Bandstand became a sea of support, with hundreds donning keffiyehs and waving Lebanese and Palestinian flags. Parents and children alike waved Palestine flags while chanting and conversing with their neighbors, highlighting the intergenerational support for a free Palestine.
The rally was organized by and saw participation from various activist groups across Boston, including the Boston branch of the Palestinian Youth Movement, BDS (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions) Boston, JVP (Jewish Voice for Peace) Boston, and the Boston Coalition for Palestine.
Following a year of scholastic genocide, (“scholasticide”), where Israel systematically bombed and destroyed every one of Gaza’s universities, many local students have been compelled to act for a free Palestine. Now that no universities are left standing in Gaza, students in Boston continue to refuse complicity: students from Northeastern, Harvard, MIT, Emerson, Brookline High School, and more attended Oct. 6’s rally in protest. They are acutely aware of how Israel’s actions have robbed Gaza’s youth of both their present and their future through education—an especially heinous crime given Gaza’s historically high literacy rates and the value placed on education by its people.
Young speakers from local colleges and high schools emphasized the importance of the student movement in advocating for Palestinian rights following Gaza’s devastating scholasticide. Several other speakers voiced demands, including the call to “Free Palestine from imperialism and Zionism” and to “Shut down Elbit Systems.” The rally underscored the widespread and diverse support for these demands.
Accessibility was a priority at this rally and march, with organizers recognizing and addressing the diverse needs of all participants. Before the march, speakers encouraged everyone to express their frustration in ways that felt natural and safe to them. They also emphasized the varying risk levels of different groups (i.e., families with children, students, and seasoned activists), making it clear that everyone has a place in this movement, regardless of their circumstances and how much they can participate.
When the march left the park, it intersected with the Jimmy Fund Cancer Walk. The parallel movements highlighted the need for mutual respect and understanding during collective action, regardless of the cause.
Northeastern Law Students for Justice in Palestine (@nuslsjp) held an all-day art build Oct. 8 in Dockser Hall’s common area, where they made posters, paper flowers, and a paper missile with a sash that said “Divest from Genocide.” Fake dollar bills with the tagline “Bank of Northeastern University” and the Northeastern logo adorned the paper missile, and each bill stated different ways that Northeastern profits from the genocide in Palestine. One bill read “research for the department of defense” and another listed “endowments investments” as one of the many ways Northeastern funds genocide. Blood spilled from the top of the fake missile over the rest of its body, signifying the tens of thousands of Palestinian lives lost to U.S. funding the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF).
On the organization’s Instagram, they said, “We created a missile to visually illustrate our institution’s complicity in the ongoing Nakba. Your tuition dollars fund this genocide. And you have the privilege to attend this school while the people in Gaza have been robbed of the opportunity to do so because of the scholasticide.”
Last Wednesday, Oct. 9, roughly 60 people gathered at the Christian Science Plaza at 1:30 p.m. to march to the Cabot Center, where Northeastern hosted a career fair with arms manufacturers like RTX (formerly Raytheon), Textron Systems, and others responsible for developing weaponry for the United States and Israel. The original location of the career fair was Curry Student Center, but it was changed to Cabot last minute—presumably because of the protest.
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The security guards at the Christian Science Center insisted that the group stay on the concrete at the plaza, threatening arrest for trespassing to anyone who stepped on the adjacent brick path. The rally was attended by members from Huskies for a Free Palestine (@hfp.neu), Northeastern Students for Justice in Palestine (@nusjp), Northeastern Law Students for Justice in Palestine (@nuslsjp), the student body and a few faculty members. Boston police, State police, and Northeastern University Police officers followed the rally from start to finish on bikes, riding after the group even after they marched away from the Cabot Center at 3:30 p.m.
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As they marched, rally members chanted “NEU you can’t hide, we charge you with genocide,” “Disclose, divest! We will not stop, we will not rest,” and “Hey NU, what do you say? How many kids did you kill today?” to protest Northeastern’s financial dealings with major arms companies.
The cost of solidarity with Palestine has proven to be a high one, as many professionals have lost their jobs or been doxxed for being openly pro-Palestine. Many student protesters wore masks and other facial coverings to obscure their faces from administration, police, and journalists. Following an update to the demonstration policies in the Student Code of Conduct, administrators are now allowed to force demonstrators into showing student IDs and removing face masks for identification purposes. If a student violates the code of conduct, the university can withhold, delay, or revoke their degree. One of our journalists, Lina Petronino, experienced the student identification policy in action when she was questioned by a police officer and a member of Northeastern administration for photographing the protest while wearing a keffiyeh in front of the Cabot Center. They took her student ID away for 20 minutes, claiming that she wasn’t a student until her name was found on the student registrar.
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“We have reached one year of Genocide in Gaza, in which, as per conservative estimates, 40,000+ Palestinians have been murdered, including 17,000+ children. On Wednesday, Northeastern University showcased its unequivocal complicity in genocide by inviting key players of the so-called ‘defense’ sector to campus, including General Dynamics, RTX (formerly Raytheon), Draper, MIT Lincoln Laboratories, Textron Systems, and MKS Instruments. These organizations exist to fuel global wars and develop new technologies of murder. As long as Northeastern remains complicit in genocide by failing to disclose, divest, and denounce its investments and partnerships with the ‘defense’ sector and Israel, we will not be complacent.”
Statement from a HFP member who wished to remain anonymous
The rally ended at around 3:30 p.m. when the group marched down Huntington Avenue to disperse from Boston police officers, who followed them on bikes. As the group began walking down Huntington Avenue, a pro-Israel counter-protester began following the rally and shouting, “Free Israel.” Once the rally reached the Christian Science Plaza, one of the lead organizers encouraged protesters through a megaphone to go home with other attendees for their own safety.
Last Thursday, Oct. 10, over 50 students walked out of class in a show of solidarity with the people of Palestine.
The walkout, which was organized by NUSL SJP, was held in the courtyard between Dockser Hall and the Knowles Center. It was open to all students and brought a variety of other attendees, including professors, general faculty members, and Chong Kim-Wong, the Vice Chancellor and Dean of Students at Northeastern.
Three people spoke at the walkout, including a Jewish student who criticized Israel’s conflation of Judaism with Zionism and ensured that anti-Zionist Jewish students know they are welcomed in pro-Palestinian spaces.
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Speakers, organizers, and audience members alike also commemorated one year of Israel’s genocide against Palestinians in Gaza by discussing the events that led up to October 7, the ongoing siege, and ways to help.
“To those that choose to criticize the way the Palestinians set themselves free,” said one of the speakers, “I have to ask: Where have you been this whole time? Palestinians have resisted Israeli oppression since 1948. Where were you during the Great March of Return when Palestinians in Gaza peacefully protested and were shot down by the hundreds?
Where were you when Israel ordered 1 million Gazans to evacuate into supposed safe zones in the south, creating a modern day Trail of Tears, only to bomb them on their way down? Where were you when volunteer medics were pulling children’s corpses out of the rubble after they were flattened under the weight of their homes? Where were you when Hind Rajab, a five-year-old Palestinian girl, frantically called the emergency hotline after her entire family was murdered in their car, only to be intentionally murdered by Israel as medics came to rescue her?”
Excerpt from a speech made by a speaker at the walkout.
After condemning Israel’s internationally recognized war crimes, speakers highlighted Palestinian humanity and resistance in light of years of dehumanization, occupation, and oppression.
“[It’s been] one year of Palestinians sharing what little they have with each other, of taking in orphans, of refusing to abandon their elderly as they get displaced time, and time again,” said another speaker. “But I promise you one thing: Israel will get tired of killing us much faster than we will get tired of resisting.”
In between speeches, organizers led chants demonstrating solidarity with the Palestinian cause, including “Ain't no power like the power of the people, cause the power of the people don't stop” and “From the sea to the river, Palestine will live forever.” Towards the end, they reflected on their “Week of Rage,” celebrating the community engagement during Monday’s art build and Wednesday’s screening of “Gaza Fights for Freedom,” as well as the $700 they raised for Palestinians during Tuesday’s donation tabling.
Before the final chant, organizers continued fostering community by directing students to introduce themselves to a stranger and discuss additional ways they can support Palestine. After regrouping, they led a final chant—“Disclose, divest, we will not stop, we will not rest”—once again calling on Northeastern to stop investing in the Israeli apartheid state.
(Photos and videos from the Northeastern events have been blurred and/or cropped to protect the anonymity of protestors and organizers).
