Football cheering wasn’t the only yelling coming from the Pratt & Whitney Stadium on Aug. 30. As fans gathered for the match between the Central Connecticut State University Blue Devils vs. the University of Connecticut Huskies in East Hartford, some students and community members took time to make their voices heard for another reason. Hosted by 21 organizations from within UConn and around the state of Connecticut, protesters assembled at the entrance of the stadium to speak out against Israel’s ongoing assault on Gaza.
As the first protest within the community so far this academic year, this was a necessary reassertion of the community’s opposition to the genocide at a critical moment where we, as students and youth, must be more vocal and persistent in our resistance.
Protestors gathered at the entrance at around 10 a.m., hours before the game was scheduled to start at 2 p.m. The turnout was approximately 25 participants which was less than expected, but unfortunately consistent with a trend of lower attendance at recent protests across Connecticut. Despite the smaller crowd, morale was high and voices were made louder to compensate for the fewer number. Demonstrators held signs such as “No More Wars for Profit” and “Israel stop bombing children… we’ll stop demonstrating,” which were displayed near traffic lights to spread their message to passing bystanders. Organizations like Healthcare Workers for Palestine, Veterans for Peace and UConn MSA appeared with posters, keffiyehs and courage to combat UConn and its Foundation’s shameless investments in this genocide.
Protests surrounding UConn have been a result of Radenka Maric and her administration’s unwavering support and relations with their companies that directly aid the mass ethnic cleansing of Palestinians. UConn’s direct ties with defense contractors such as Pratt & Whitney and Lockheed Martin made this game’s location a direct target. Rentschler Field was previously owned by Pratt & Whitney, who plays a large role in the genocide by supplying military aircraft and equipment used by the Israeli Defense Force. This inevitably raises serious questions on where our university’s morals and ethics truly lie.
These demonstrations within the community began long before, defined by opposition to Israel’s occupation of Palestine, dating back to the 1900s. The near-total annexation of Palestinian land, particularly the Gaza strip, has unfolded with such a level of violence that people have been forced to take to the streets to revolt.
Global waves of protests have emerged in response to Israel’s unjustifiable claim that their actions have been a result of self-defense. This resistance shows no stopping, including right here at UConn’s season opener.
Activism surrounding the Israel-Palestine genocide has been ongoing at our university, especially from student organizations like Hillel and Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP). Over the past year, SJP has maintained an active presence, aiding in Palestinian marches across CT and organizing study-ins in the Student Union and Babbidge Library. They have also co-hosted prominent voices like Norman Finkelstein — the son of Holocaust survivors and a Jewish scholar who has publicly condemned Israel’s actions in Gaza as genocidal.
There is a serious issue when society shifts from justifying why innocent lives shouldn’t be killed to justifying why they deserve the right to live. There is a serious issue when denial persists, even though no atrocity in history has ever been documented to this extent. And, most of all, there is a serious issue when society refuses to condemn the killing of a child simply because the word ‘Palestinian’ comes before it.
A person I deeply respect once said at a protest that it doesn’t matter whether you were there on Oct. 7, 8 or any of the days that followed, what matters is being here now. Seeing the protestors gather, even in small numbers, was a reassurance and a reminder that the battle isn’t over, even if the army isn’t as large. Moving forward, there are plans to hold vigils at all the UConn home games for the rest of the season.
To anyone reading this who still holds an ounce of humanity, I appeal to you: use your voice. Speak a truth so rooted in justice that when the right side of history prevails, you can say you were part of it. As famine has been officially declared on the Gaza Strip, there is now an immediate responsibility and need for us to speak out.
So, for now, whether it’s on UConn’s campus, in the streets of New Haven or all the way over in Washington, D.C., the movement should never rest until the ones truly suffering can rest. If that means bringing the protests to the gates of a football game, so be it.