'LONG LIVE THE STUDENT INTIFADA': 'Temple students hold pro-Palestinian rally
Dozens of demonstrators at Temple University held a “Dis-Orientation Rally” organized by the liberal-leaning Temple Action Solidarity Coalition, protesting Israel and calling for divestment.
The group also linked Gaza violence to ICE enforcement and promoted collective activism on campus.
Dozens of demonstrators gathered at Temple University on Sept. 4 for a “Dis-Orientation Rally,” organized by the Temple Action Solidarity Coalition (TASC).
Protesters, wearing keffiyehs and masks, carried Palestinian flags and signs reading “Temple funds genocide” and urging school President John Fry to “protect immigrant students.”
During the demonstration, protesters stopped for speeches and chanted “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” while police and security looked on. Students demanded that Temple disclose its investments and divest from Israel in line with the Boycott, Divest and Sanction (BDS) movement.
“Right now, we have to act, or 2 million people are going to be starved to death,” said Temple law student Jackson Kusiak. “They can dictate the time, manner and place of our protests, but that doesn’t mean that they can silence our voices, and we should still be allowed to demonstrate outside respectfully, peacefully, as is our right under the United States Constitution,” Kusiak added.
The organizing group, TASC, has previously taken firmly anti-Israel stances. In a Sept. 3 Instagram post advertising a protest, the group joined into a statement criticizing Israel’s attack in Gaza and Immigrations, Customs, and Enforcement’s (ICE) crackdown on illegal immigration.
“As Philadelphia students attend their first classes, the Israeli occupation forces brazenly move forward with their plans for a ground invasion of Gaza city, calling on 60,000 IOF reservists to aid in their campaign of annihilation,” the group posted.
“At the same time, ICE kidnappings and detentions of our neighbors ravage our community,” the group added. “Join us on Saturday to DEFEND OUR CITIES: FROM GAZA TO PHILADELPHIA. LONG LIVE THE STUDENT INTIFADA!”
TASC co-founder Kelly Koob emphasized collective action with regards to the Thursday rally, stating, “I don’t think we should be afraid to talk. We have power as a collective.”
In January 2024, Campus Reform published an exclusive report when the Department of Education launched their investigation into anti-Semitic activity on Temple’s campus following a complaint submitted by Zachary Marschall, editor-in-chief of Campus Reform.
In December, Temple reached a voluntary agreement with the Department of Education over a Title VI complaint alleging the campus allowed anti-Semitism to persist. The agreement followed reports of swastikas and incidents involving the SJP chapter.
Temple and four other Pennsylvania schools were also urged by Senators John Fetterman and Dave McCormick in letters sent on Aug. 28 to strengthen measures against anti-Semitism and allocate resources to protect Jewish students following rising campus hostility.
“Since October 7, 2023, when Hamas and its collaborators committed the deadliest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, Jewish students have faced unprecedented hostility on university campuses,” the senators noted.
Campus Reform has contacted Temple University for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
