“We are not intimidated and we are not seeking permission.”
By Omar Karmi: On a late-morning sunny May day in central London, students at the
Gaza encampment in the grounds of the School of Oriental and African
Studies were slowly stirring.
Occupying a small green space between university buildings across
from the main entrance, the SOAS encampment comprises some 20 tents.
It’s small but remarkably organized.
At the front is an information desk with leaflets for passersby on
the Palestinian struggle, on students’ demands, a schedule of upcoming
speakers at the encampment, and so on.
Inside the camp, there are workshops for the students themselves on
anything from Palestinian history and anti-colonial studies to
self-defense and yoga, as well as specific areas set aside for studying
and cooking.
The students there are determined to be in it for the long haul.
“This [encampment] is just one tactic,” said Brandao, a liberal arts
undergraduate, who, like everyone else interviewed for this article,
only gave a first name.
He was keen to emphasize that while the students protesting had
specific demands from the SOAS administration to “stop profiting from
the oppression of the Palestinian people,” the first priority was to
keep the focus on what is happening in Gaza specifically and Palestine
more generally.