“As a faculty member at UCSD since 1986, I have rarely seen a more sophisticated and tempered demonstration of student activism as the Justice in Palestine calendar of events that took place last week. The centerpiece of the events–the impressive wall on Library Walk–was a superior educational experience that provided the campus community with both empirical and artistic data with which to analyze an extremely complex political issue. The students who maintained the “wall” area were always respectful of all opinions and courteous to spectators. I understand the other events were extremely well-attended. I was able to attend the Angela Davis lecture on May 13 that attracted over 500 people. It was both informative and stimulating; I especially enjoyed the movie and remarks made by a UCSD student who returned recently from the Palestinian territories. Overall, the week’s events must be viewed as a huge success (whether or not one agrees with the content of each event) given the fact that UCSD is a campus that rarely turns out large audiences. The Justice in Palestine calendar exposed our students to one of the major issues of the day and did so in a rational and pedagogically sound way. I congratulate the UCSD Muslim Student Association and all of our students who organized the events.”
Professor Jorge Mariscal
UC San Diego
May 16, 2010
