Students for Justice in Palestine organized a “die-in for Rafah” outside Charles Library Wednesday from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
The students gathered near the main entrance of the library and, after listening to a poem, a few dozen participants lay on the ground in silence for an hour. Large banners draped around them on the ground read, “Stop the genocide in Gaza,” and “Why are we afraid to talk about Gaza?”
“A die-in is a symbolic way of silent protest,” said Besan, an SJP member who chose not to share their last name for safety reasons. “We didn’t say any words, nothing, just laid on the floor to show what’s going on in a silent way.”
The demonstration shows support for Rafah, a Palestinian city under a series of Israeli strikes since Feb. 11. Israel planned to expand its ground offensive into Rafah, the last place of relative safety in Gaza, if Hamas did not free Israeli hostages by the start of Ramadan, which began Feb. 20, The Associated Press reported. More than 29,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023.
“I think we somewhat achieved what we were trying to do by putting it in people’s faces,” said an SJP organizer to the crowd. “[It was for] those who refuse to see the pictures, those who refuse to see the images and videos coming out.”
SJP has issued several demands to the Temple administration, including calls to recognize SJP, protect Temple students, call for a ceasefire and an end to the dehumanization of Palestinians.
Following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel, the university wrote a statement condemning terrorism, stating, “There is never any excuse for the despicable acts of terroristic violence that we have witnessed.”
The university wrote in another statement to the Temple community that it “unequivocally [condemns] antisemitism, Islamophobia and other acts of hatred and discrimination.” Temple encouraged students to seek out any support they may need through university safety and counseling services.
“Now our biggest demand from the university is to divest,” the organizer said. “That includes weapon corporations, places that are on the [Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement’s] list, like Starbucks and HP, that we all use in the computer labs, Lockheed Martin and General Dynamics. Our main demands are to cut all ties between all contracts and not renew contracts to stop actively investing money from our tuition money.”
The Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement calls for boycotts of companies deemed supportive of Israel’s actions in Palestine, according to The Washington Post.
“I personally feel like I can’t stand by while innocent Palestinians are being killed and murdered,” said Alejandro, a dance major who attended the protest and also chose not to share their last name for safety reasons. “I think it’s important to get numbers and it’s power in people that’s worth it.”
SJP planned the die-in in a central location on campus so many students would have to walk around the protestors on their way to classes, increasing the demonstration’s visibility.
“I think [a passerby should get] awareness on campus,” Besan said. “I think it’s critical to even mention the word Palestine because [Temple hasn’t]. They’ve never acknowledged the Palestinian student body on their campus.”
SJP has organized various other protests, including a sit-in at the Howard Gittis Student Center and marches down Broad Street.
“I think it’s symbolic of the actual scenes that are going on,” Besan said. “If you go to [Palestine], you’ll find that the floor is filled with dead bodies because there is nowhere to bury them.”
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