DAY OF RESISTANCE TOOLKIT

INTRODUCTION

National Students for Justice in Palestine is calling for a national day of resistance on college campuses across occupied Turtle Island and internationally this Thursday, October 12th, 2023

On the 50th anniversary of the 1973 war, the resistance in Gaza launched a surprise operation against the Zionist enemy which disrupted the very foundation of Zionist settler society. On the morning of October 8th, the Palestinian resistance stormed the illegitimate border fence, gaining control of the Gaza checkpoint at Erez, and re-entering 1948 Palestine. Referred to as Operation Towfan Al-Aqsa (Al-Aqsa Flood), the resistance has taken occupation soldiers hostage, fired thousands of rockets, taken over Israeli military vehicles, and gained control over illegal Israeli settlements. In the West Bank, the Palestinian resistance has called for collective action by the Palestinian masses amidst attempts by the Zionist entity to lock-up the West Bank. The Palestinian resistance has called for mass protests in every Palestinian city, and Palestinian workers have called for a general strike. ​In Gaza, Israel has launched an onslaught of airstrikes. As of Sunday, Oct 8th at 12pm ET, Israel has murdered 320 Palestinians and left over 2200 others injured. Despite this, our people choose resistance over negotiated cages on our homeland. Fearlessly, our people struggle for complete liberation and return.

Today, we witness a historic win for the Palestinian resistance: across land, air, and sea, our people have broken down the artificial barriers of the Zionist entity, taking with it the facade of an impenetrable settler colony and reminding each of us that total return and liberation to Palestine is near. As the Palestinian student movement, we have an unshakable responsibility to join the call for mass mobilization.

National liberation is near— glory to our resistance, to our martyrs, and to our steadfast people.

JOIN THE DAY OF RESISTANCE NATIONAL CALL-IN MEETING

  • On Monday, October 9th @ 5:00 PT/ 7:00 CT/ 8:00 ET, we will be hosting a national call-in meeting to meet with chapters, talk through the political significance of this moment, talk through how-to’s for the protest day of action and troubleshoot any support needed. Please RSVP here: https://forms.gle/AbK7RmidTRPYVcAfA 

CALL TO ACTION: NATIONAL DAY OF RESISTANCE

  • On Thursday, October 12th, National Students for Justice in Palestine is calling for a national day of resistance from the student movement for Palestine liberation on college campuses across occupied Turtle Island (so-called US and Canada) and beyond. We must continue to resist directly through dismantling Zionism, and wielding the political power that our organizations hold on our campuses and in our communities. We are asking chapters to host demonstrations on campus/in their community in support of our resistance in Palestine and the national liberation struggle — one which they play a critical role in actualizing.
  • Please fill out this brief form to let us know what events you will be hosting! These will be posted and publicized on our social media – filling out this form will help us better coordinate and unify nationally as a student movement https://forms.gle/H7uqKuVL22AAtzUZA 
  • Please upload any pictures or videos that you are comfortable with us sharing here! https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1r4_5Ugt9eocMgvqm2J7FXlxRGTy0vXBJ 

We will also be having a “how to organize a protest,” including roles, security, media training, and more, on the National Call-in meeting on Monday, Oct 9th at 8pm ET. The presentation + resources shared will be added to the tool-kit following the presentation. If you need additional help organizing or planning your protest, please reach out to National Students for Justice in Palestine. (RSVP link above).

If a protest is not possible, engagement across the movement — whether it be a sit-in, disruption, or educational event — is highly encouraged!

Other ways to participate

Other ways to participate

  1. Table/Flyer on campus
  1. Challenging Zionist hegemony and popularizing our resistance is a critical part of advancing our national movement! Print flyers to put up around your campus. We encourage you to use  any of the graphics linked in this toolkit. For examples of tabling materials, click here and here,  
  1. Teach-ins
  1. Make sure people on your campus know what’s happening in Palestine, and are armed with a framework which advances national liberation– host a teach-in on your campus! We will include a teach-in during the National Call-in meeting – please attend for inspiration. For information and framing, click here and here!
  1. Sign onto statement from Bears for Palestine
  1. We welcome both individual and organizational endorsements onto this statement by Berkeley Bears for Palestine in unwavering support of the Palestinian resistance
  2. Towfan Al-Aqsa Statement – Bears for Palestine  
  1. Write a local statement of solidarity
  1. Statements of support show a cohesive and united movement. Work with other organizations on your campus to put out a joint statement expressing your campus’ support for Palestine.
  1. Share within your network/region:
  1. If you’re near other SJPs, let them know what you’re planning! If you’re in close geographic proximity to one another, you may be able to plan a joint action.
  1. Help spread the word by sharing widely on your campuses and in your communities
  1. Contact student organizations across movements to share your action on social media. Engage your community, and let everyone know that the student movement on occupied Turtle Island stands firmly in support of Palestinian resistance.

MESSAGING & FRAMING

For over 75 years, our Palestinian people, through steadfast resistance, have waged a prolonged war for liberation and return to our colonized homeland. What we are witnessing now is a heightened stage of the Palestinian struggle–through tearing down colonial infrastructure and liberating our colonized land from illegal settlements and military checkpoints, our people are actualizing revolution. Palestine will be liberated from the river to the sea, and our resistance, through their bravery and love for land, continue to bring dignity and honor to the Palestinian people. As the diaspora-based student movement for Palestine liberation, our responsibility is to not only support, but struggle alongside our people back home. The forces of Zionism engage in media campaigns which attack our people and resistance from all sides– it is our responsibility, therefore, to break through their hegemonic narratives of “war” and “unprovoked aggression,” and instead ground our campuses and communities in a narrative which centers the legitimacy of resistance and the necessity of complete liberation. Please find below a breakdown of framework and important messaging which help contextualize, frame, and above all normalize and support our fearless resistance.

  • When people are occupied, resistance is justified — normalize the resistance.
  • The Palestinian people have the right to resist colonization and oppression. The Palestinian people have the right to return to their homeland and free themselves from the complete land, air, and sea siege they’ve been subjected to; this requires resistance, and it is both morally just and politically necessary. These events are the natural and justified response to decades of oppression and dehumanization. 
  • The fight for Palestinian liberation is a necessary struggle against an occupying and colonial state; not a “war” or “conflict.” It is a struggle for national liberation. 
  • In the eyes of the West, there is no “right” way for Palestinians to fight for their freedom. Every tactic is met with repression.
  • The occupation, the day to day and the existence of Israel is not peaceful; there is no ‘maintaining the peace’ with a violent settler state.
  • Settlers are not “civilians” in the sense of international law, because they are military assets used to ensure continued control over stolen Palestinian land.
  • Responsibility for every single death falls solely on the zionist entity. They do not care one bit for the Geneva Conventions but demand Palestinians follow them to the letter.
  • Gaza as the cradle of resistance
  • Gaza broke out of prison. Resistance fighters captured one of the bulldozers used to destroy Palestinian homes, and used it to breach the illegitimate border fence back into ‘48 Palestine.
  • Gaza is being subject to collective punishment because the occupation knows liberation is inevitable.
  • Zionists are telling Gazans to leave while also denying them freedom of movement–this is a call for genocide of Palestinians.
  • “I say to the residents of Gaza: Leave now because we will operate forcefully everywhere.”--Netanyahu
  • This is not “unprovoked”. Apartheid, ethnic cleansing, indiscriminate bombing, arbitrary detention, destruction of infrastructure, 75 years of settler colonialism are provocations.
  • Liberation is material
  • Liberation is not an abstract concept. It is not a moment circumscribed to a revolutionary past as it is often characterized. Rather, liberating colonized land is a real process that requires confrontation by any means necessary. In essence, decolonization is a call to action, a commitment to the restoration of Indigenous sovereignty. It calls upon us to engage in meaningful actions that go beyond symbolism and rhetoric. Resistance comes in all forms— armed struggle, general strikes, and popular demonstrations. All of it is legitimate, and all of it is necessary.  
  • “You don’t get freedom peacefully. Freedom is never safeguarded peacefully. Anyone who is depriving you of freedom isn’t deserving of a peaceful approach by the ones who are deprived of their freedom.”-Malcolm X
  • israel is fragile
  • This action of resistance shatters the illusion of Israel as an impenetrable, indestructible entity. The zionist entity is fragile, and Palestinian resistance is alive. The iOF are still in disarray and the resistance fighters are still launching new attacks into 48.
  • The zionist entity built a massive technological barrier to imprison Gaza that the resistance neutralized in hours. They massively underestimated the ingenuity of the resistance, and will continue to do so.
  • Settlers are already fleeing the land, their ‘dedication’ to the settler colony is easily broken. The dedication of Palestianians for their national liberation is unshakable.
  • From Rhodesia to South Africa to Algeria, no settler colony can hold out forever.
  • Unity Intifada
  • The revolution is being waged across historic Palestine— not just cross-factional, but unifying our people in the name of resistance
  • All Palestinian factions in Gaza appear to be participating under unified command.
  • This is the first time since 1949 that a large-scale battle has been fought within ‘48 Palestine.
  • We as Palestinian students in exile are PART of this movement, not in solidarity with this movement.
  • This is a moment of mobilization for all Palestinians. We must act as part of this movement. All of our efforts continue the work and resistance of Palestinians on the ground.

HASHTAGS 

  • #studentdayofresistance
  • #operationalaqsaflood
  • #nationalliberationisnear
  • #dayofresistance

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