Sooners for Peace in Palestine led a demonstration Monday morning to raise awareness of the violence in Gaza.
Students waited in line in front of Bizzell Memorial Library to sign a petition urging Oklahoma senators to consider more humanitarian aid in Gaza, said Bekah Stone, president of Sooners for Peace in Palestine and international and area studies junior.
The purpose of the petition is to make U.S. lawmakers and the public more aware of the crisis in Gaza, Stone said.
“I feel that we have a very biased perspective, considering the conservative state that we are,” she said. “So what we’re doing is offering letters and petitions to our senators asking for a more even-handed approach for foreign policy in Palestine and Israel and for humanitarian aid for the people in Gaza.”
Israel launched a three-week assault against Gaza in late December, aimed at stopping years of rocket fire into southern Israel by Hamas, which seized control of the Gaza Strip in 2007. The fighting killed nearly 1,300 Palestinians, Gaza officials say, and 13 Israelis.
A cease-fire put into effect two weeks ago has since been tested by sporadic Palestinian shelling and retaliatory Israeli airstrikes. Hamas has claimed victory simply by surviving.
In letters to U.S. senators Jim Inhofe and Tom Coburn, the group urged the senators to pursue a more active approach to resolving the conflict in Palestine and Gaza.
“If people are suffering you should do something about it,” Stone said. “The suffering of these people is the same as my brothers or sisters dying.”
Stone and her supporters said they realize they might not see a direct impact, but are still optimistic.
Lauren Twist, international and areas studies sophomore, said she wants widespread support and wants to spread awareness of the struggles in Gaza.
“We’re submitting two letters to two senators asking for more support and funding for Gaza,” Twist said. “If constituents act out, then the congressmen will listen.”
Mounes Habj-Bik, zoology senior, said he supports the petition because he feels there are no human rights in place in Gaza.
“I’m not asking for America to go in there to rescue Gaza from Israel,” he said. “But I’m asking them to give more human aid and support their basic needs.”
Misheala Giddings, president of Sooners for Israel and international and area studies sophomore, had a slightly different view of the Gaza demonstration.
“The demonstration presented a very one-sided view of why there is a problem in Gaza,” Giddings said. “I did, however, encourage my members to sign the petition because we approved of the language.”
She said the fliers handed out by Sooners for Peace in Palestine didn’t address the involvement of Hamas or Arab nations, particularly Egypt, which she said should also be held responsible for the lack of aid flowing to Gaza.
A panel discussion about the issues in Gaza will be held at 4 p.m. today in Meacham Auditorium and will include a visiting professor from Israel.
— The Associated Press contributed to this report
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BSchmidt 3 years, 3 months ago
"Israel launched a three-week assault against Gaza in late December, aimed at stopping years of rocket fire into southern Israel by Hamas, which seized control of the Gaza Strip in 2007. The fighting killed nearly 1,300 Palestinians, Gaza officials say, and 13 Israelis. A cease-fire put into effect two weeks ago has since been tested by sporadic Palestinian shelling and retaliatory Israeli airstrikes. Hamas has claimed victory simply by surviving."
Objective journalism FAIL. Basic research FAIL.
It should read:
"Israel launched a three-week assault against Gaza beginning on Dec. 27, aimed at stopping rocket fire from Hamas into southern Israel. The Hamas party was elected to the Palestinian parliament in 2006 and has control of Gaza. About 1,300 Palestinians and 13 Israelis were killed, said Gaza officials. A ceasefire agreement was reached on Jan. 18, and on Jan. 21 Israel withdrew troops from Gaza. The Israeli and Palestinian sides have since violated the agreement with sporadic shelling. Both sides have claimed victory; Israel for the sheer number of Hamas killed, and Hamas for surviving Israel's attacks."
A good day to you all,
-B. Schmidt, An OSU-educated journalist
jewsaac 3 years, 3 months ago
I think it's interesting which words you chose to omit from the original article, such as changing, "years of rocket fire" into simply "rocket fire". Considering that Israel's actions are, in fact, a response to rocket fire that has continued and grown exponentially since Israel's complete disengagement from Gaza in 2005, I'm not entirely certain the omission of "years" contributed to your journalistic duty to provide context.
I also think that the statement "Both sides have claimed victory; Israel for the sheer number of Hamas killed, and Hamas for surviving Israel's attacks"is clearly both slanted and misinformed. The statement as written makes it sound as though Israel is bloodthirsty, while Hamas is a fragile victim. First of all, this is a gross misrepresentation of the two entities. Second, Israel does not see the campaign as a success. Ehud Barak, the defense minister, actually issued a statement lamenting the high rates of casualties and expressing that, given the high rights of civilian deaths in contrast to few goals actually achieved, this venture was at best step 1, and at worst (and the more likely scenario), a step backward.
Objective response. FAIL. Contextual understanding of situation. FAIL. More than just basic research. FAIL.
Thank you Matt for posting this article. It was fine the way it is.
johnj_34 3 years, 3 months ago
Hi: thank you for your comments on such a well written article. I can see none of you have any valid comments, and frankly I think this Matt Montgomery guy is the best journalist at the Daily which is more than I can say for you naysayers who commented so hastily on such a well written artice. Next time you talk about objective journalism and how this article was one-sided, why don't you consider the fact that you'll aren't the one's who wrote it. Also, the factual information, experienced journalist B. Schmidt came from the assosiated press website. So, don't say MAtt Montgomery is a bad reporter, it might be the opposite he is a great writer and you're a terrible reader. So, bottom line if it doesn't say your name next to the headline(B.Scmidt), than boo-hoo for you. Have a wonderful day John J. Righteous Hypocrite!!!!!!!!!!!!! long live H.S.T.
BSchmidt 3 years, 3 months ago
No, no, no, don't get me wrong. I fully and totally support Israel. That being said, I also support unbiased journalism. This article clearly leans toward the pro-Israel side — and though it is the side with which I agree — I cannot take it seriously because of the flawed journalism. Most who agree with its stance on Israel and/or aren't journalists won't see the flaws in it. I agree with what the article says, just in no way do I agree with how it was written.