SMC pro-Palestine rally clashes with Israeli Independence Day celebration
Chrissy Washington, Renée Bartlett-Webber, Taylor Parise, Sohrab Pourjavady
Israel supporters celebrated while Palestine supporters rallied at Santa Monica College (SMC) on Tuesday. The events that culminated in the quad remembered Israeli Independence Day, or Yom Ha'atzmaut, and the Nakba, or "the catastrophe," that displaced many Palestineans from the same land.
The Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) at SMC hosted a rally on the north side of the quad to commemorate the 1948 Nakba and honor the Palestinian victims and survivors. Although the Nakba is traditionally remembered on May 15, according to Michael Tuitasi, SMC Vice President of Student Services, SJP held their event on May 14 due to scheduling issues at the school.
The Jewish Affinity Group (JAG) of SMC employees coordinated a celebration of Yom Ha'atzmaut on the south side of the quad at the same time. The Jewish Student Center contributed food and “Jewish spirit,” according to leader Rabbi Eli Levitansky.
SJP at SMC first promoted their event on Instagram on April 27 with a flier announcing it would be held on Tuesday, May 14. The post read, “Let us come together as a community to honor the courage, sacrifice, and legacy of the Palestinian people.”
About two weeks later, on May 10, the JAG sent out an email blast to faculty, encouraging them to promote the Jewish American Heritage Month event at the same time and location as the SPJ event. “Join us in recognizing Jewish American Heritage Month,” read the flier.
Professor Deborah Novak, who is a member of JAG, shared their thought process for planning their gathering on the same day. “They’re having this demonstration tomorrow, or rally tomorrow, and so our conversation was, you know, ‘How do we want to handle this?’ So, we decided that we are having a counter-activity at the other end of the quad, giving people another space to go to,” she said.
Many expressed concerns for safety leading up to the events. According to Michele Farnoush, the president of the Chabad Club, Students Supporting Israel did not feel safe making a presence on campus. Additionally, Santa Monica local Houman David Hemmati tweeted, “This Tuesday, violent pro-Hamas “protestors” are planning to march from @SMC_edu to @santamonicacity City Hall and are expected to cause chaos, disruption, possible property damage, etc.”
While both protests were peaceful and remained in the quad, there was a substantial police presence with both SMC campus Police standing guard and barricades separating the two groups.
Johnnie Adams, SMC Chief of Police, said that their presence was mostly a last resort, and students or staff who misbehaved would be reprimanded by SMC administration before being spoken to by police. ”We’re visible, but not too visible,” he said.
Thomas Bui, SMC associate dean for student life, watched on the outskirts of barricades at the Nakba rally. He said that he was not here for the Israel event. “My responsibilities are only concerned with our student clubs and our safety,” he said. He added that he has been in communication with SJP throughout their planning process, and they asked him to attend.
SMC administrators placed a 200-foot “free speech zone” between both events to help facilitate peaceful discussion among attendees. “We wanted to set up ways that students could engage, and speak,” Tuitasi said. By the end of the event, both pro-Israel and pro-Palestine supporters held peaceful confrontations, discussions and chants there.
A pro-Palestine student who identified herself as Ray said that she didn’t find her conversation with several pro-Israel high school students productive. “Overall, they didn't really want to lend an ear, they more wanted to continue to provoke and ensure that what they believe was being represented,” she said.
On the other hand, Eli Schwartz from a nearby jewish high school said, “I felt that it was very productive until, you know, the rest of the crowd came over and started chanting.”
Tuitasi said, “I think any time we can bring groups together to have a conversation, it’s great, and this is part of the student experience. I protested when I was a student, so we just wanted to make sure the students feel safe and comfortable.”
When asked about the climate at SMC surrounding the Israel-Palestine conflict, a student who identified themselves as Sea Bass said, “I mean, there are occasionally threats of fights, but, you know, not as much as other schools, I reckon. And the academic environment is not really disrupted. So I'd say, probably because it's a smaller school, but overall, it is a healthier environment, I'd say, and I'm able to have healthier conversations with other people.”
Both celebrations ended at 12:35 p.m. and were followed by unplanned discussions between the groups within the free speech zone. The pro-Palestine group was the last to leave the quad and dispersed around 1:30 p.m.
