Around 100 students gathered at the University Religious Center on the evening of October 8 to learn about generations of Palestinian film, paintings, drawings, theater, music and poetry in “The Art of Resistance,” hosted by the USC Divest From Death Coalition, Jewish Voices for Peace USC, SCALE at USC, USC SJP and USC Graduate Students for Palestine.
The event aimed to demonstrate the power of art as a political and social symbol of resistance and liberation. According to the Students for Justice in Palestine Instagram story on Tuesday night, the event raised more than $4,000. USC SJP is not a recognized student organization.
The event is part of the coalition’s “Week of Rage” programming, which included the walkout event on October 7, marking one year since Israel’s military response to Hamas’ attacks began. Student organizers said on Instagram that the events were held to note “one year of genocide and one year of resistance” as they protest the deaths of more than 40,000 Palestinians. DPS was also present for Tuesday night’s event, with several officers and vehicles stationed outside the Religious Center.
“The goal of tonight was to really emphasize that resistance and steadfastness come in all different forms. It’s not just doctors who refuse to leave their post in Gaza when the IOF threatens to kill them, or the journalists who are continuing to report in North Gaza despite the fact that the IOF is targeting them,” an SJP student representative, who wished to remain anonymous, said. “We wanted to highlight today how art specifically, through all its mediums, whether it’s poetry, painting, music, film, all of these different mediums have resisted Israeli occupation for the past 76 years.”
Presentations were given about the history of political statements through Palestinian art, highlighting artistic expressions such as the Dabke, a traditional folk dance, and tatreez, a traditional Palestinian form of artistic embroidery, which have become symbols of Palestinian liberation in recent years.
Freshman Jude Awadallah, an international Palestinian student from Jordan studying biomedical engineering, recited a piece by Syrian poet Nizar Qabbani, first in Arabic, then in English.
“I studied poetry in sixth grade about how the people of Gaza have resisted so long. Reminding the people of Gaza that what they’re doing shows how strong they are and how much they care for the land, and they shouldn’t care about what others are doing around them,” she said after a round of applause.
Freshman theater major Carolina Ayala, who came to the event to buy the art of a contributor, added that “having the art of people from the community helps attract attention from people outside the community.”
She said that since students can be visual learners, the event was innovative in showcasing art in this light.
“Art can be a good way to show what people are fighting for,” she said.
Billy Vela, a former USC employee and longtime director of the Latinx Chicanx Center for Advocacy and Student Affairs, also touched on the event’s emphasis on community.
“I just think events like this that give people a chance to cross paths, to come together, are important,” he said. “The change is dialogue. If you look around, we had an opportunity to be engrossed in conversation and now we’re talking to each other. As a Trojan alum myself, it’s so important for us to be able to talk on many different levels.”
The artwork at the event included donated paintings, drawings, books and more that were available for auction. The proceeds from auctioned items were donated to the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund.
Pieces of watermelon were distributed at the event, a symbol of Palestinian solidarity after the 1967 Arab-Israeli war when public displays of the Palestinian flag were banned in Israel — the watermelon became a symbol of resistance. Watermelons crocheted on hats and beanies were among the items up for auction.
According to the SJP Instagram story, the next event in the Week of Rage programming will be a “study-in for Palestine” from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on October 9.
Tanisha Saraff contributed to this report.
A previous version of this article identified Billy Vela as longtime director of its Center for Latinx & Latin American Studies. Billy Vela was the longtime director of the Latinx Chicanx Center for Advocacy and Student Affairs. Annenberg Media regrets this error.
A previous version of this article wrote that Divest from Death hosted this event. Jewish Voices for Peace USC, SCALE at USC, USC SJP and USC Graduate Students for Palestine hosted the event as well. Annenberg Media regrets this error.