American Students Are Protesting Against Palestinian Genocide. Our Corrupt Institutions Are Trying To Silence Them

By Frederick Joseph Photos: Fredrick Joseph\YouTube Screenshots As I write this, a reckoning unfolds across the campuses of this nation. Beneath the shade of storied halls and against the backdrop of ivy-wreathed facades, a new generation rises, stirred not by the quiet hum of apathy, but by the thunderous call of justice. College students at Columbia University, Yale, USC, NYU, and many other institutions around the country, are rising in protest against what they have come to understand as an active genocide in Gaza. An ungodly catastrophe led by Israel and funded by the United States that has already claimed the lives of nearly 35,000 reported souls. Not including the lives taken of aid workers who were simply attempting to provide help on the ground for Palestinians who countless organizations and historically trusted sources, such as the United Nations, have identified are facing high-risk of famine. Last weekend, I immersed myself in the unfolding narrative at the heart of these protests, spending time at Columbia University in quiet observation, engaged conversation, and earnest listening among the students. As I navigated through the calm of their clustered gatherings, the peaceful yet potent nature of their assembly struck me profoundly. It was...