Officer Statement on Palestine and Student Activism
As many of you may have seen, there has been an encampment in solidarity with the people of Palestine on Royal Fort Gardens, outside Senate House since the beginning of May.
Peaceful protest is a crucial way for people to have their voices heard by those in power. As your Full-Time Officer team, we support and encourage every student at the University of Bristol to exercise their rights to protest, to free speech and to engage in action, as well as education, around this issue. We continue to be devastated by the war in Palestine and Israel, and hope to see an end to all violence, an immediate ceasefire, a return of hostages, and ultimately a free Palestine.
Similar encampments have occurred across Universities in the United Kingdom, following those at American Universities like Columbia. How events have developed in America, with extreme hostility towards student protestors, is terrifying to us – especially in the context of protest rights coming under threat in this country. We want to be clear that we will always aim to protect the wellbeing and defend the rights of student activists, such as those in Royal Fort Gardens, as well as the wellbeing of the wider student body. No one should feel unsafe on our campus – to exist, to study, or to protest and speak out.
It’s vital to acknowledge that the events occurring in Israel and Palestine, as well as those now occurring on British campuses, are impacting certain parts of our university community in profound and varied ways. The wellbeing and safety of the marginalised students and staff who will be most affected by this has always been our utmost priority. We know that many of our Palestinian, Jewish, Israeli, Muslim and Arab students are suffering right now – and we want to extend our deepest compassion to them. We also know that sadly what is happening in the Middle East has caused increases in Antisemitism, Islamophobia, anti-Palestinian racism and anti-Arab racism in the UK, and so, we will continue to fight all forms of discrimination and bigotry which appear on our campus. We do not want to see the suffering of our students further worsened.
At present, we understand that emotions and tensions are running extremely high, especially for those most affected – and that not everyone feels safe on our campus. We urge that while everyone exercises their right to free speech and the right to protest or counter-protest, you are mindful of what you say - and how that may be received by those most affected by this conflict. We want to encourage mutual empathy in light of this horrific situation which has brough deep pain, suffering and grief to many. All people have the right to live in peace and prosperity – and it’s through understanding, community, and solidarity that we can get closer to making that future a reality.
While we understand the difficult position that British Universities may currently be in, we are disappointed by the approach the University of Bristol has taken when speaking about this issue. We agree with Vice Chancellor Evelyn Welch that ‘it is more important than ever that we uphold our shared values of mutual respect, support and compassion.’ However, we know that many students affected by this tragic conflict, do not feel they have been given sufficient support and compassion from the University since October 7; we ask that the university does more going forward.
We know that one key anxiety of some students, and one of the main demands of protestors, centres around the University’s perceived complicity in the war due to partnerships and investments in the defence industry. As an Officer Team, we completely support, and echo calls for our university to cut ties with the defence industry and we have active policy on this from our AMM last year.
Further, we continue to question why the University will not use the word ‘Palestine’ when speaking about the conflict, something which Palestinian students have pointed out feels like an erasure of their identities and their nation. We urge for the words ‘Palestine and Israel’ to be used in the future, as opposed to just the ‘Middle East’ and ‘Gaza’. The VC stated in her message that the university cannot “adopt an institutional position in relation to the ongoing conflict”, as the university’s “role is to enable staff and students to express themselves freely, not to become an advocate for one view or another”. While we understand this - it must be recognised that not all students and staff do feel able to express themselves freely on this matter, partly due to the university’s approach thus far. We hope to see continued, and hopefully increasingly productive, conversations between the University executive team, including the Vice Chancellor, and affected students, staff and activists as we all continue to learn how to adjust to the realities of this conflict and its sustained impact on our campus.
What have we been doing?
Since October, as an Officer Team we have been working closely with those most affected to support and protect student wellbeing, while constantly reviewing how else to represent students at this time. Your Equality Liberation and Access Officer Saranya has taken lead on this, being in regular contact with our Friends of Palestine society and our Jsoc, and regularly representing student voice on this to the University. Adam, your Union Affairs Officer has been supporting Isoc, and Izzy, your Student Living Officer has been working with student activists. We have taken a number of actions this year to try and support students.
You can see everything we’ve done and keep up with our activity around the conflict on our webpage.
We have ensured that if this is impacting your ability to study and/or your exams, you may be able to receive extensions or exceptional circumstances.
What we want to hear from you!
As VC Welch mentioned in her message, in response to recent events, the University has recognised a growing need to assess the suitability of our third-party relations with a focus on the defence industry – and will be exploring this issue in the upcoming meeting of University Senate on Monday 17 June. The VC has welcomed students to communicate their views through representatives at Senate - faculty reps and your PG & UG Education Officer are members of Senate – you can get in touch with them via email (su-ug-education@bristol.ac.uk or su-pg-education@bristol.ac.uk). We encourage students to take this opportunity to voice their views on the issue to the University and as your FTO team we will also be presenting our view to Senate. You can find the full membership of Senate here.
As a community, it is all our responsibility to create a safe environment for all students. Hate speech or discrimination of any kind is unacceptable and has no place on our campus. If you witness or experience incidents of islamophobia, antisemitism, anti-Palestinian racism, or any other forms of racial prejudice we urge you to reach out. You can speak to us, your personal tutor or wellbeing services, and if you feel able, please report the incident using the University’s report and support tool – you can do so anonymously.
If you are affected by this, have any questions, concerns or want to speak to us as your representatives, please do not hesitate to reach out. While we may not understand exactly what everyone affected is going through, we want you to know that we feel and share your pain and frustrations.
In Solidarity with Students Worldwide,
Your Full Time Officer Team
