SDSU student pushes for human dignity, amidst Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Mateo Olmos, a San Diego State graduate student is among the thousands of students right now actively exercising their freedom of speech in opposition to the war in Gaza. “I don’t identify as Middle Eastern or Palestinian, I am Black and Mexican, but I do have friends that identify with both cultures, and I feel strongly about the liberation of people and helping the oppressed be free,” said Olmos, a graduate student in the Public Health Department. Voice & Viewpoint caught up with Mateo last Tuesday as the “Walk out for Palestine” demonstration was ending at the university. Sporting a Martin Luther King t-shirt and Palestine flag in hand, directly across from him was an Israeli student holding up the Flag of Israel. The conversation was peaceful, but the scene was a sharp contrast to the images seen just an hour ago within the newsroom. Chaotic encounters of police arresting students, and violent engagements between Jewish and Palestinian students dominated the news cycle and took over our television. What was seen in front of Hepner Hall at SDSU couldn’t be farther than that. “I feel like it is fair to get both points of view, because when people are protesting...