Hello all!

I know, things have been kinda slow our way as of late, but we have some exciting events coming up that you should REALLY check out. Oh, and, if you haven't already heard: we dropped the first part of our name, since it was getting ridiculously long. So, we're now UNCA Students for a Democratic Society! AND, we won an award for Outstanding Student Group of the Year! Ok, so on to the events:

Wed April 18th 7pm RH125: Crisis in the Philippines a talk by Mark and Melissa Dimondstein who are antiwar and labor activists with NC Labor Against the War and the American Postal Workers Union. They will be speaking about the "war on terror" and the current situation in the Philippines and about their delegation to the Philippines hosted by the Filipino labor movement, the Kilusang Mayo Uno (http://www.kilusangmayouno.org/).

Fri April 20th 7pm RH125: Live from Iraq: An Eyewitness Account Come hear Sami Rasouli, an Iraqi-American currently living in Najaf, Iraq talk about the current situation in Iraq. Rasouli moved to the United States in 1985 to seek medical help for his oldest son. His family decided to live in Minnesota, opening up Sinbad's Cafe and Market. In 2004, he decided to move back to Najaf and founded the Muslim Peacemaker Team, which works to rebuild devastated cities, reduce violence and protect human rights. You can read the latest Democracy Now! interview with Sami Rasouli here: (http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=07/04/02/1345213). He will also have original Iraqi artwork from both adults and children for sale - half the proceeds go to the artists and half go to the Muslim Peacemakers Team, so bring some extra cash for a good cause!

Hope to see you out at both of these important events! And hey - if you're going to the dance party at the Grey Eagle, it starts at 9pm, so you can still come to the talk beforehand. That's right. And remember - we still do meet, every Tuesday in the Highsmith Boardroom, but our meetings are starting at 7:30pm from now till the end of the semester.

CONGRATULATIONS!!! The Students for a Democratic Society have been
named "Outstanding Student Organization" for 2007. The committee also
felt that ASHE should receive that same distinction.

The Leadership Awards will be given out on Thursday, April 19 in the
Humanities Lecture Hall
at 7:00 pm.

This is a great resource for activists in NC and the South for learning about how the military-industrial complex operates in our state & region. Check out the link here to read the report online: http://www.southernstudies.org/NCatWar.pdf

SDS March 20 National Day of Action: Thousands of students walk out, take to streets

By Josh Sykes

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"Stop the war, yes we can! SDS is back again!" This was a popular chant heard around the country as students in high schools and colleges walked out of classes, held rallies, marches, teach-ins and other creative actions in response to the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) call for national coordinated student actions on March 20, the fourth anniversary of the beginning of the Iraq War. The call was put out by SDS groups that met at the School of the Americas protest last November, where 100 students from 20 campuses voted unanimously to make March 20 a national day of student action against the war. Those 20 schools quickly became 83, as colleges and high schools from the Northeast to the Midwest, from West Coast to the South, signed on to the call.

The call for action read, "We, students and young people here in the U.S., support the right of the Iraqi people to self-determination. We refuse to accept this new strategy to 'expand the military,' and reject any means the government may use to make these new troops materialize - whether through the implementation of a draft or the continued use of manipulative and deceptive recruitment techniques. We refuse to be subtle in our outcry against this war, we refuse to do nothing and be silent while people are killed in our name for profit for the rich and we refuse to be sent overseas in a war for oil."

Kati Ketz of the University of North Carolina -Asheville SDS, one of the lead organizers for the national March 20 day of action, said, "It's incredibly inspiring to see students taking up this call to action and organizing on a local level. Students are becoming united and organized across the country against the war, and we're really going to see a new student movement emerge out of these actions."

Veterans and Their Families Speak Out

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	UNC-Chapel Hill students block traffic during their march on March 20

SDS students at the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa chanted, "What do we want? Troops Out! When do want it? Now!" as they rallied and marched. Corbin Martin, a veteran of the Iraq war who fought in the battle of An Nasiriyah said, "The American people, in 2006, made it clear that they want our troops out of Iraq, with their vote, yet President Bush will not listen. Instead President Bush has increased the number of troops and continues to do so. This is unacceptable. This is more than a failed policy; this is injustice."

Martin said that his experiences in Iraq led him to oppose the war. People in the audience wept as Martin told them that, "After the battle of An Nasiriyah, my unit occupied a small farm community south of Baghdad. I learned to speak a little Arabic and had become relatively proficient with my translating book, so I was in charge of handling civilians that needed to come through our position. One day, an old Arabic woman drove up to our position. She was crying and walked right up to me speaking very fast. It took some time, but I finally realized what she was saying. She said that a helicopter had shot missiles at her town and her grandson was injured during the attack. I looked in the back of her car and saw the little boy sitting there. I walked over to the car with the boy's grandmother. I still have nightmares about what I saw. One of the little boy's arms and one of his legs were gone. All that remained were bloody stubs, wrapped in dirty rags. I ran over to my Staff Sergeant and told him about the boy and his grandmother. He told me to send them away, that the medical supplies were for us, not them. I am ashamed to say that I followed that order. I sent them away. I don't know if that boy got help, but I pray every night that he did."

In Rock Hill, South Carolina, students from the Winthrop University Socialist Student Union signed onto the call and led a rally of 100 students. Summer Lipford spoke about her son, Steven Sirko, who had been a medic in Iraq for exactly four months when he was killed in 2005 at the age of 20. Courtney Hunt, one of the organizers at Winthrop, said, "I underestimated the Winthrop student body. They aren't as apathetic as I thought. It shows the students are looking for an outlet like this, and I want to provide it for them."

In New Brunswick, New Jersey, Rutgers Against the War led a walkout and rally of 400 students "My son was a Rutgers graduate," said Sue Niederer, speaking of her son, Ceth Dvorin, who died in Iraq. "My son went here. My son paid the ultimate sacrifice. He was 24 years old and he had just been married. And the recruiters were on this campus and all the other campuses around and they got him by their lies, deceit and deception." During the march, protesters blocked traffic on southbound Route 18.

High Schools Join the Walkout

Numerous high schools came out to oppose the war on this historic day of action. In South Jersey, Cherry Hill High School East students held a rally to oppose the war. "Why are we spending billons of dollars on a war that doesn't matter?" asked Lai Wo, 17, a Cherry Hill student. Over 300 high school students at Maria Carrillo walked out of classes in Santa Rosa, California, in one of the largest of the high school walkouts.

With chants of "No blood for oil - U.S. off Iraqi soil!" students from the University of North Carolina-Asheville SDS walked out and marched downtown, where they were joined by dozens of high school students who had walked out of Asheville High. "We're letting people know that we don't believe in this," said Carla Michelle Moore, an Asheville High senior. "I don't want to watch people go home in body bags." Charla Schlueter, one of the organizers of the UNCA SDS walkout said, "Any great change that this country has seen, whether it has been in the workplace or in ending unjust wars, it has been achieved by the people taking to the streets and demanding it, not by the government suddenly realizing its own benevolent nature. Student movements have often been at the core of these changes."

Many Raleigh, North Carolina high schools came out for March 20 to join with demonstrating students from North Carolina State University, including Enloe, Southeast Raleigh, Cary, Green Hope and Raleigh Charter High Schools.

Struggle Builds on the University Campuses

Many major universities from around the country participated in the day of action as the wave of protests swept every corner of the country. SDSers from Brown University in Rhode Island staged a die-in in downtown Providence in front of Textron Inc., a corporation contracted to manufacture helicopters, armored vehicles and munitions. Harvard University students held a candlelight vigil and read the names of Iraqi and American casualties. 500 students marched at the University of Florida in Gainesville.

At New York University, students held a rally called 'Red Tuesday' where students dressed in red to symbolize the human cost of the war held up giant banners reading "658,000," representing both the Iraqi and U.S. casualties of the war.

In Chapel Hill, North Carolina, UNC-Chapel Hill SDS organized hundreds of students to walk out of classes and march through the streets. SDS members marched alongside the Black Student Movement and Student Action with Workers as they chanted antiwar slogans such as "Walk out! Resist! Carolina, raise your fist!" and blocked traffic. "The dead are our age," said Tara Ilsley. "They're in their 20s. What are we doing now? The war isn't accomplishing anything. In my opinion, it's become another Vietnam." One sign at the protest read, "ACC Champs against the occupation."

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	University of Minnesota students march at protest organized by the U of M Anti-War Organizing League (AWOL)

At the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, over 300 people came out, including clerical workers from the campus, community members and students. One clerical worker voiced solidarity with the growing student movement, saying, "If workers and students work together the sky is the limit!" Other speakers talked about the importance of 'surge' in the student movement - a reference to Bush's plan for a 'surge' of 21,500 more troops to Iraq - noting the importance of escalating the movement in response to the escalation of the war. Protesters took to the streets, occupying a busy intersection for 20 minutes. They then took their energy to the campus, marching through, chanting, "Money for schools, not for war! Hands off Iraq!" and "Who is the terrorist? Bush is the terrorist!"

In Chicago, Students for Social Justice at University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) led hundreds of students in the largest protest on campus since the start of the war. Sussan Navabi, an organizer from UIC, reported on the new student movement. When she said, "Let's hear it for the students that walked out of classes today to protest this war," the crowd roared its support. At the rally, Bill Ayers, a leader of SDS in the 1960s spoke to the assembled crowd. Ayers encouraged the current generation of student activists to see the impact they are having, telling them, "Students today are inspired by what we did in the 1960s, but then feel they can't compare. But the largest anti-war rally I ever attended in Chicago was in March 2003 when the invasion of Iraq occurred." Nearby Wright College organized the first ever anti-war rally on their campus, with 30 students. Two Iraqi women students spoke, calling for troops out now. Students from both schools joined thousands of others marching in downtown Chicago.

Build the Student Movement - Build SDS!

A great deal of the momentum for the March 20 day of action was built by the 27 schools, mainly on the West Coast, who held student strikes and walkouts on Feb. 15. Momentum is building, and as the war drags on into its fifth year we are seeing a new wave of student activism emerge. A national student movement is a necessary weapon against Bush and the right wing. Building the newly emerging Students for a Democratic Society is a major component to building a strong anti-war movement.

From Fight Back! News

Momentum Grows for March 20 Student Day of Action Against the War

by Brad Sigal

At colleges and high schools across the country, students are building for a day of protests on March 20 against the U.S. war in Iraq. Students at more than 60 schools have protests planned on that day, in the largest coordinated day of student anti-war protests in years. A press release for the March 20 actions says, "In the space of just three weeks, over sixty campuses have signed onto the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) call to action—from Tuscaloosa, Alabama to Grand Rapids, Michigan; from high schools in central North Carolina to the west coast campus of UC Santa Barbara; from urban centers of Chicago, Boston, New York, and Los Angeles to rural campuses of Tennessee and Iowa—and in dozens of places in between."

The call for March 20 student anti-war protests came out of an SDS meeting at last November's protest against the School of the Americas in Fort Benning, Georgia. Many SDS chapters are organizing March 20 protests, but the day of action has become broader as other student / youth organizations have also joined in, including the Campus Antiwar Network and World Can't Wait's youth group.

In the March 20 press release, Kati Ketz of the University of North Carolina-Asheville SDS, one of the initiators of the day of action says, "What started out as four schools participating in a day of action snowballed into 18, 25, 34, and now over 60 schools from all over the country standing up and taking action against this illegal and unjust war and occupation of Iraq. It's incredibly inspiring to see students taking up this call to action and organizing on a local level. Students are becoming united and organized across the country against the war, and we're really going to see a new student movement emerge out of these actions."

Anti-war Momentum Builds

On February 15, students at 27 schools participated in a day of action against the war initiated by students at the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB). The February 15 UCSB protest inspired the anti-war movement around the country as over a thousand students marched and took over a highway for two hours, then marched back to campus to demand that their university cut ties to military research. On March 12, New York City SDS chapters marched to a military recruiting station, then shut it down for almost two hours until 23 students were arrested. This month SDS in Washington State has targeted the Port of Tacoma, where protesters have been tear gassed and dozens of people have been arrested in a series of protests for more than a week at the port where Stryker vehicles and other equipment are being loaded on a ship for Iraq. On March 17, SDS chapters will have a contingent in the national March on the Pentagon. Momentum is building toward a broad and energetic day of action at schools across the country on March 20.

During this school year the anti-war movement has grown quickly on campuses. In that context Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) is becoming a dynamic student activist organization that is playing a key role in the anti-war movement. Dozens of active SDS chapters have sprung up at schools around the country. SDS is growing because of a commitment to mobilizing students to take action against imperialist war while making connections to other issues, and because of its commitment to an open, democratic and non-sectarian approach. SDS takes its name from the well-known 1960s student organization that played a leading role in catalyzing the movement against the Vietnam War. With the bold protests over the past month and with the upcoming March 20 coordinated day of protests, SDS is increasingly at the center of the growing student movement to stop the U.S. war in Iraq.

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For information on the March 20 student day of action against the war, see http://march20antiwar.blogspot.com or email march20antiwar (at) hotmail.com

The Students Are Stirring:

A Campus Antiwar Movement Begins to Make Its Mark

by Ron Jacobs

Folks often ask, rather cynically, where are the students protesting the war?  Well, the answer is that they are there -- on their campuses and in the dorms -- organizing speakers, rallies, and teach-ins.  The fact that folks off campus do not hear about these events does not mean that they aren't happening.  What it does mean is that the media is choosing not to cover them.  Here in Asheville, NC, the local SDS-linked group at University of North Carolina-Asheville (UNCA) organized a counter-recruitment protest in January 2006 and a walkout and march against the war last October and is now actively involved in getting students to go to the March 17th March on the Pentagon.  At UNC's Chapel Hill campus, six students were arrested on February 17, 2007 after refusing to leave Congressman David Price's office in a protest demanding that he vote against further war funding.  Meanwhile, on February 15th, students at campuses around the country held rallies and teach-ins against the war.  While the movement has not reached the proportions organizers want to see, it is growing.  The next student day of protest is scheduled for March 20th -- three days after the March on the Pentagon.  I recently connected with UNCA SDS member Kati Ketz over email.  Besides her activities here in Asheville, Kati is also a spokesperson for the SDS call for the March 20th Day of Action against the War.  The exchange with Kati was an opportunity for me to learn what antiwar students have been up to and how they see the future.  I share the transcript below.

Ron: First, what is the March 20th Day of Action?  How did the idea originate?

Kati: March 20th is an SDS national day of student and youth action against the war in Iraq.  The idea came out of an SDS-sponsored meeting of activists at the School of the Americas demonstration in Ft. Benning, GA.  Over 100 students from 20 different campuses were at this meeting, and at the end we voted to make March 20th a national day of action, in order to take all of the local organizing we have been doing on our campuses and attempting to connect those struggles to make a larger impact on a national scale.

Ron: What do the organizers hope to accomplish?  What would connote a successful day, here in Asheville and nationally?

Kati: We hope that this day of action will be a catalyst for students to rise up and get organized against the war in Iraq.  Four years is four years too many, and it's time that students in this country get organized against this war.  In Asheville, we hope that our actions will draw in more people who want to get more involved in organizing against the war.  We also hope that our actions contribute to building a grassroots student anti-war movement.  Nationally, we hope that this will help build ties with other campuses and connect different movements together in order to work towards ending this war.

Ron: I notice that the majority of the campuses that have signed on to the March 20th action are from the southern part of the United States.  Why do you think this is?  In my mind it's significant in that it goes against the idea so many US residents have about the south -- you know, reactionary and pro-war.

Kati: I think it is very significant that a lot of schools from the south are organizing against the war.  It goes against the stigma that the south is normally faced with -- that all anti-war organizing happens in the north and that the southern US is largely ignorant of and not involved in any progressive movements.  There is some exciting organizing going on in the south  -- for example, UNC SDS  took part in organizing a demonstration against John Ashcroft, who came to speak at their campus.  Members of both Alabama and Asheville SDS groups also have participated in a lot of events (MLK day marches, a 4th of July march in New Orleans) concerning race and national oppression, since that is something that is especially relevant to us in the south.

It's amazing to see that, for March 20th, the schools signing on to the call are from all over the United States -- from North Carolina and Alabama in the south to Los Angeles and Santa Barbara in the West to New York City and Boston in the northeast to Minneapolis, Chicago, and Ohio in the Midwest, to name a few.

Ron: What is your impression of the new SDS?  Is it growing in numbers and influence?

Kati: I think that we as students finally have an opportunity to build an independent student anti-war movement through SDS.  I talk with students on a regular basis that are either considering or have just affiliated with SDS, and the number of SDS chapters grows weekly.  SDS groups are having regional conferences and connecting with each other through forum, conferences, and actions.  Now, we are connecting with one another as SDS through this national day of action.  There is a felt need in the student movement for a national student anti-war organization, and SDS is it.

Ron: What are your hopes for its future?

Kati: My hope for the future of SDS is that we continue to grow both in influence and in numbers across the nation, and that we are able to get organized on a national level in order to have even more nationally coordinated actions against the war in Iraq.  There is a new wave of student activism in this country, and I hope to see SDS play a leading role in this movement.  The student movement against the war in Vietnam took awhile to take off, but once it did it took off in a big way.  We hope to see the same develop with SDS against this war in Iraq.

Ron: What are some of the other campaigns SDS is involved in -- nationally and locally?

Kati: The main campaign that SDS is involved with is working against the war in Iraq, but SDS is a multi-issue progressive organization.  In Asheville, we had a week of action around Palestine, where we built a 45-foot long, 8-foot tall mock apartheid wall on our campus and hosted teach-ins and showed a documentary about the situation in Palestine. There have been student strikes and marches for immigrants' rights in conjunction with the May 1st demonstrations.  UCLA SDS worked with UCLA's Movimiento Estudiantil Chicana y Chicano de Aztlán (MEChA) to organize a demonstration against a speaker from the Minutemen that ended up canceling his speech at the university as a result of the protest.  University of Central Florida SDS recently issued a statement calling for release of former Black Panther political prisoners.  SDS is a vehicle for taking actions around any and all progressive issues.

Ron: Back to the war.  What do you personally think it's going to take to end this war?

Kati: The Iraqi resistance are the ones fighting against this war every day, and -- similar to what we saw with the national liberation front in Vietnam -- they are the ones who have the power to end it.  The United States and their allies are losing the war in Iraq, and it is only a matter of time before they are forced to withdraw their troops.  Here in the United States, we need to work on getting Bush and the Republicans out of the White House -- for example, there is going to be a large demonstration at the Republican National Convention in Minneapolis in 2008.  We in the anti-war movement also need to put pressure on the Democrats to actually adopt concrete measures against the war and to stop funding the war.

Ron: What do you think the role of students and other young people is in the movement to end it?

Kati: The role of youth and students in the movement to end the war is to build the anti-war movement.  We need to take to the streets in a major way and resist the ongoing war and occupation of Iraq, and this is exactly what is happening.  On February 15th, thousands of students in Santa Barbara occupied a highway for hours, bringing the war and the anti-war movement back into the front pages of the media.  We need to continue with this momentum and continue to organize! 

Ron: When you're organizing on campus and elsewhere, do you run into a lot of cynicism and apathy from other young people?  What at do you say to those youth who dismiss the antiwar movement?

Kati: There is always going to be a certain amount of apathy and cynicism from young people on any major issue -- it's easy to feel that your voice in a movement does not matter and will do nothing to change things.  What these students need to remember, however, is that the masses are the makers of history.  It has historically been social movements -- not great leaders -- that have changed the course of history.  It is our role in this present day as students and youth to make those movements and be a part of them.  As far as apathy is concerned, what is more important right here and right now than the fact that the United States government is continuing an unjust and illegal war and occupation in Iraq that is causing the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people?  I think more and more students are recognizing this -- at UNCA we are going door-to-door in the dorms trying to get people to pledge to walkout of their classes, and almost everybody we talk to is very receptive and wanting to do something to end the war, and just need an organization or action to plug that energy into.

Ron: Is SDS encouraging young people to attend the March on the Pentagon on March 17th?  On a side note, what is your take on the ongoing squabble between the two national antiwar coalitions -- UFPJ and ANSWER?

Kati: SDS is mobilizing for the March on the Pentagon on the 17th -- there is an SDS organizing team and a planned SDS contingent for this march.  There was also an SDS-led student contingent at the January 27th UFPJ demo in DC.  As far as the fighting between UFPJ and ANSWER -- I cannot speak for all of SDS, but ANSWER tends to have more anti-imperialist politics like that of SDS.  There was an open letter to UFPJ written recently that was critical of the call that they put out for a protest in NYC on March 18th -- the day after the ANSWER March on the Pentagon and during the planned encampment in DC.  Some SDS activists signed on to that letter and I agree with it.  I oppose any kind of efforts to divide the anti-war movement.

Ron: How can people interested in organizing or attending a March 20th action find out more?

Kati: People interested in organizing an event for March 20th, or even if schools are on spring break but still support the call to action, should contact march20antiwar@hotmail.com.  There is also a blog about the March 20th actions -- march20antiwar.blogspot.com -- where people can see what schools are participating, reports about organizing methods from schools, and press roundups.

Ron: Anything else?

Kati: The call to action for March 20th grew out of an initiative from an SDS meeting with 20 campuses, started out as having four schools signed on to action, and now has over 50 schools participating.  The momentum for this is tremendous, and shows that we are truly in a new period in the student anti-war movement.  It's so inspiring to see actions being planned all across the country, with different student groups working and connecting with each other.  The groups participating range from large well-known universities to small-town high schools with a couple of students taking up the initiative.  I hope that we can continue with this energy past March 20th and really make history with the work that we are doing, everyday, to end the war.

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Ron Jacobs is author of The Way the Wind Blew: A History of the Weather Underground, just republished by Verso. Jacobs' essay on Big Bill Broonzy is featured in CounterPunch's new collection on music, art and sex: Serpents in the Garden. He can be reached at <rjacobs3625@charter.net>.

[Also published online at ZNet, Portside, and Leftspot]

(see also: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2242892902)

CITIZEN-TIMES.com

UNCA students want counselor reinstated

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ASHEVILLE — Chanting "reinstate Maggie" and "we want answers," about 100 students rallied at UNC Asheville on Wednesday afternoon in support of counseling center director Margaret Weshner, a longtime UNCA employee whose termination has angered many students and faculty.

Weshner's position has been terminated as part of a restructuring plan that will combine student health and counseling services, said Bill Haggard, vice chancellor for student affairs.

The rally reflects a larger concern among some UNCA students and faculty about a lack of respect toward long-term UNCA employees by the administration, according to faculty members.

The faculty senate passed resolutions this month in support of Weshner and stating it is "alarmed and concerned with the recent involuntary departure of longtime employees."

"What has been created here is a climate of fear," said Mark Boyd, associate professor of computer science, who said he knows long-term employees who have been forced to retire, chosen to leave because of that climate or have been fired.

Concern about treatment of staff began before Chancellor Anne Ponder's arrival on campus about 17 months ago, said Boyd, who has been at UNCA for more than 20 years. "It's not just about Maggie," he said about faculty concern. "This has built up over a period of time."

According to the university's public information office, during the prior three semesters, about 62 full-time faculty and full- and part-time staff members left the university. In the three semesters before the chancellor's arrival on Oct. 1, 2005, about 68 such employees left.

The reasons for employee departures are confidential under applicable law, said university spokeswoman Merianne Epstein. Numbers of departures among longtime staff were not available Wednesday, she said.

Unlike faculty, staff members do not have the protection of tenure.

Ponder said she will be following up with the faculty senate and others on campus in light of the resolution. "This has been a year of enormous changes," Ponder said. "Change is hard. All of us can consult with one another better, and I will work with the community to do that."

Weshner said she was told there was no place for a counseling center director under the plan combining health and counseling services. The faculty senate resolution supporting Weshner calls for her reinstatement through the end of the academic year to help transition students in her care.

Weshner said she is seeing about 45 students, some of whom she will continue to work with on her own time without compensation. "There are certain therapeutic relationships that can't be terminated in this amount of time," she said.

Students use the counseling center for a range of mental health services, said counselor Maggi Saucier. "It could be anything from anxiety to depression," Saucier said. The department hopes to tap a temporary counselor next week with Weshner gone, Saucier said.

According to the university's public information office, the counseling center averaged between 350 and 400 patient visits a year, while the student health center averaged 9,000 patient visits a year.

Her last day as counselor is Friday, Weshner said, and thereafter she will be on special assignment for three months. The remainder of her time at UNCA, which runs through the end of 2007, will be covered by paid leave, she said.

Students rallying for Weshner's reinstatement said her termination removes an important resource for reasons that haven't been fully explained.

"They're not letting us know why," said senior Nikki Espie, who helped organize Wednesday's rally. "I'm hoping we can keep up this pressure. I really hope they get the message."

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.

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Fight Back News Service | www.fightbacknews.org