Fourth Estate/ Brandyn Fragosa

SJP Protesters aim chants at President Gregory Washington during the “Divest From Death” protest last Thursday

BY BRANDYN FRAGOSA, OPINION EDITOR

Last Thursday, Feb. 8, the “Divest From Death” protest was held by GMU Coalition for Palestine and Students For Justice in Palestine at George Mason University. The protest started in Wilkins Plaza at 2 p.m. and ended at 3:28 p.m. following a march to Merten Hall. According to their post, SJP Mason demands “an end to all ties that George Mason University has to military contracting companies.”

Protesters, wearing black and white keffiyehs along with red painted hands, held up signs saying, “This is not a conflict,” and “Free Palestine now.”

“You [President Washington] have blood on your [his] hands because as we know, George Mason University is investing in and taking money from the defense contractors for its programs,” an SJP Mason protest organizer alleged.

The Protest, which took place a day after the Student Town Hall on Feb. 7, featured a speech about President Gregory Washington.

“Yesterday, the President of our university, Gregory Washington, stated, and I quote, ‘The same companies that create damage over there, create the same weapons that defend your freedom, the same company provides the weapons that allow America to be what it is,’ and to Gregory Washington I would like to ask, allows America to be what? The perpetrator of global violence? Do Palestinians in Gaza not deserve that same freedom,” an SJP Mason protest organizer said.

“Gregory Gregory you can’t hide, you’re complicit in a genocide” protesters chanted. “Shame on you Washington,” another chant said.

Fourth Estate/ Brandyn Fragosa

The SJP Mason protest organizer then said that Mason is allegedly, “investing in the American corporations that are profiting from the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza.” 

The organizer then claimed that Washington is, “complicit in the murder of innocent Palestinians,” and, “hold [him] responsible for [his] failure to act.”

One protester also made a claim regarding Mason’s funding. “I feel like it is important for us to speak up and speak on the $26 million that George Mason directly funds to bomb the children in Gaza,” the protester said. “I feel like it’s very important for all students to come out to protest because all of our oppressions are connected and that includes Sudan, Congo and Tigray.”

Regarding an alleged funding of $26 million, Washington denied this claim at the Student Town Hall. “We don’t know where that number came from, don’t trust what you read on social media.”

 “George Mason University does not actually invest money anywhere. There is a separate 501(c)(3) called George Mason University Foundation that actually does all of the investments for the campus. It’s a separate 501(c)(3) with a separate leader with a separate board. It does not answer to the Board of Visitors, and it does not answer to the President… It is not your tuition dollars,” Washington said.

As of Feb. 14, Fourth Estate could not verify funding allegations made by SJP Mason.

At 2:45 p.m., the protesters left Wilkins Plaza and began marching towards Merten Hall, holding up signs, beating drums and chanting along the campus. “Up, up, up with liberation, down, down, down with occupation,” they chanted.

Fourth Estate/ Brandyn Fragosa

An SJP Mason protest organizer then gave the speech they spoke at Wilkins Plaza outside Washington’s office in Merten Hall for the remainder of the protest.

At 3:28 p.m., another SJP Mason protest organizer ended the protest with a chant in Arabic, saying:

“!أنا راجع راجع – راجع

!أنا راجع راجع – راجع

!على أرض بلادي – راجع

!على صفد و يافا – راجع

!على عكا و حيفا – راجع

!على الخليل – راجع

!و على غزة – راجع

!أنا راجع راجع – راجع

!أنا راجع راجع – راجع”

According to the organizer, the chant is a call and response meant to rally and energize participants in student protests. 

“The part that I would say or the person who is leading the chant, they are saying, ‘!راجع

– أنا راجع راجع,’ which basically means I’m returning or I’m going back, and then the people respond with I’m going back. So I’m returning and they’re returning… then when we start switching up saying things like, ‘!على أرض بلادي – راجع.’ That’s listing the cities that we want to return to, which are cities in either occupied Palestine or the West Bank or the Gaza Strip,” the SJP Mason protest organizer said.

“We will return because that’s ultimately what we want with our movement… to return to our rightful home.”