The Associated Students of Washington State University met to hear out Pro Palestinians, Mesa chair member and the director of Student Legal Services Wednesday evening.
Four students came forward to address WSU’s investments in Pro Israeli companies. One of the four, Freya Smith, said, “I fully support a divestment of this school from companies like Raytheon, Boeing, and Lockheed Martin that support the ongoing genocide in Gaza.”
This is not the first time students have advocated on this matter. On April 26, 2024, students gathered at Bryan Hall and marched to the CUB in protest. Some members of the group demanded that WSU divest from Boeing and Lockheed Martin, which protesters said have been actively transporting weapons to be used in the killings of Palestinians in Gaza.
In November 2023, an on-campus rally with an estimated number of 100 protesters took place, expressing students’ concerns on this issue as well.
“Please think about where your money is being spent and where it comes from,” student Bobby Seldin said.
Abdelrahman Abdelrazek, chair member of the Middle Eastern Student Association, addressed ASWSU on the matter of his organization.
“I know that MESA has been very dry last year, and my goal is to make it better and bigger than it has ever been,” Abdelrazek said. “We have four officers including me, vice president, treasure and PR. We are just looking for a secretary.”
He said the club’s officers agreed there will be an introductory event on Sept. 21, with an exact time to be determined. It will be an opportunity to get familiar with the club officers, make connections and learn what MESA has to offer Middle Eastern students.
Activities will include slideshow presentations, traditional dance shows, and opportunities for students to showcase their culture, he said.
“I’m hoping to have just more general meetings every month to, like, talk about things we could potentially create, like events we can make,” he said.
Emma Heilman, member of the Student Legal Services, later announced two new attorney hires.
“One attorney of the past 20 years decided to terminate their contract,” Heilman said. “My task over the summer was to go office-to-office, to present informal bids in order to find a new attorney for this semester. Thankfully, we did.”
She plans to gain attention on Student Legal Services is through tabling, presentations and work through Greek life.
“Now that we have an attorney present, we are able to give those presentations and give advice to students. We are definitely planning on increasing that along with our social media presence,” she said.
There is a lobby meeting involving the state government at 5 p.m. Tuesday in CUB 204.
