At least five and as many as a dozen high schools including Cambridge Rindge and Latin and Somerville High were part of a march Monday from Boston Common to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, part of a nationwide and global surge of protests addressing violence in the Middle East.
The 2 p.m. march ended in front of MIT encampments holding campus community members opposing Israeli attacks on Gaza. Led by the Boston Students Palestine Coalition, the walkout hoped to promote several demands, including a permanent cease-fire in Palestine, more education about Palestine in schools and that MIT, as well as other universities, divest from “the Israeli occupation,” according to the coalition’s Instagram account.
“We’re here because we have a case and we support human rights,” said Eman Almarzooqi, a CRLS senior at the walkout. “In no way or form should students feel threatened [by school administration] because they have a statement they want to make.”
Student protesters have occupied Kresge Lawn for two weeks, sustaining one of the longest-lasting camps in Greater Boston. Administrators have been critical of the occupation from the start. “This encampment has been a clear violation of our procedures for registering and reserving space for campus demonstrations,” said MIT president Sally Kornbluth in a letter on Monday. “This particular form of expression needs to end soon.”
Many demonstrating students disagreed. “This has been a peaceful protest for the past two weeks,” said one protester, who chose to go by S.C.
Xavier Mercado, another MIT student, said, “What you can see here is just people demonstrating, exercising their right to freedom of speech and right of protest.”
Kornbluth – echoed by some residents giving testimony at a Cambridge City Council meeting later Monday – testified to hearing rhetoric from the encampment that did not sound peaceful, including some members “calling for the elimination of the state of Israel. More pointed chants have been added that I find quite disturbing,” she said. A video captured at the MIT protest on Friday included the Arabic phrase, “from the river to the sea, death to Zionists.”
Though an email from MIT chancellor Melissa Nobles said all students who failed to leave the lawn by 2:30 p.m. would face academic suspension, the protests were still going at 3 p.m. as the high schoolers arrived from Boston.
CRLS principal Damon Smith had warnings for his own students in an email, writing that “leaving school has the potential to create an unsafe environment and is disruptive to student learning experiences.” Those who left during the school day would be marked with unexcused absences, and students encouraging others to do so could face disciplinary action, according to the letter from Smith.
Cambridge students explained their motivation for attending, despite the warning: “We have anger and we have knowledge, so we have a duty to use that for good,” said one who chose to go by the initials S.T. “And I’m sure there are people saying the impact will be small. But even if someone feels safer, that’s an impact.”
Another student described CRLS history lessons as being sugarcoated, and said they would like to see “more mandatory meetings about current events,” explaining that “Palestine isn’t the only genocide going on right now.”
“I just want to highlight how inspiring it is to see how many universities and high school students have come out in support of this cause,” MIT student Alejandro Tenor said. “I think it shows a certain change in the way this issue is seen in the United States. I’m very hopeful that change is coming.”
A stronger
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In Cambridge since attendance is literally not required a walk out is just an average day. Just saying. I am absolutely frustrated with the lack of standards at CRLS. Maybe we should protest how low are expectations are for are kids.
To adapt a phrase from Paris 1968: Zionists, your children are with us.
Not low expectations. Many seniors at CRLS finished all their required credits last semester (very easy to do) and this final semester senior year can be all extra curriculars to fill the time to graduate. Besides, they’re leaving early to hang out at MIT! It’s not like they’re skipping school early on a sunny day in May to drive off with a friend in a convertible…