UTD students protest war in Gaza alongside other student bodies

Instead of hitting the books for finals, over 100 University of Texas at Dallas students spent the day lining the front hall of the university’s administration building, aiming to amplify their voices.

Fatima Tulkaren, an officer with Students for Justice in Palestine, emphasized their persistence, stating, “You know, they have continuously been ignoring us, so we’re taking it to the next step until they meet our demands.”

The group is urging the university to divest from companies allegedly supplying weapons to Israel, citing concerns about complicity in violence.

Tuesday’s sit-in mirrored similar protests nationwide, spanning from U.C. Berkeley, where demonstrators established an encampment, to NYU, where a plywood wall was erected after police arrested 120 protesters.

Amidst the turmoil, some students expressed fear, with one NYU freshman sharing, “I’m a Jew, and I am walking around campus. I am scared. I’m scared to walk around with my Jewish star.”

Despite NYU officials’ assertions that most protesters are not students, tensions escalated at Columbia University, prompting officials to move all in-person classes online through the semester’s end.

For these students, their actions are spurred by the rising death toll in Gaza, which has surpassed 34,000 Palestinians, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.

Palestinian student Noor Saleh emphasized the importance of their activism, stating, “I must stand up and organize and make sure that like we are keeping the movement going here in the United States and here in Dallas, Texas specifically. That is the fact that has kept me going.”

As of now, UTD has not responded to NBC 5’s request for comment.