Environment Valedictorian Emma Schuster acknowledged the people of Palestine in her valedictorian speech on June 11.
The first ceremony of convocation was held for the environment faculty. Taking place in PAC, the room was filled with students and their families awaiting each student’s big moment. At the beginning of Schusters’ speech, she congratulated each graduate and commended their valiant efforts to make it to this day. Afterwards, she spoke about how climate change makes the students strive for a sustainable future.
“As part of this sustainable future, we must call for an end to the genocide being committed against the Palestinian people. We are observing a large-scale destruction of land, the total elimination of post-secondary institutions in their country, and an unfathomable loss of life.
“As students who thrived in their academic mission, we must advocate for other young scholars in the world. We must work to protect the academic dreams of all Palestinian people. This is why I urge you to call on the university to divest from all weapons manufacturers and defense contractors.”
UW holds ties to Technion, the Israeli Institute of Technology. According to Technion Visiting Professor Brigadier General (Res.) Jacob Nagel, Technion professors and students work with the IDF and Ministry of Defense, with the professors and students providing ideas to fulfill requests.
Schuster continues, “You are welcome to say that this is complicated, but banks and investment workers do not move around insurmountable amounts of money with the same clicks and efficiency I e-transfer my friend $15 for lunch. However, no one said that peace was easy. Divestment is not an easy task, but neither is obtaining an undergraduate degree from any institution, let alone the University of Waterloo.
“As students, we have done so many hard things to get to this point and in our academic careers, I think it is more than fair to ask the university to do one hard thing for us. It is not outlandish for people to ask that their money does not go towards the deaths of others and I would also encourage you as you become alumni, to openly abstain from giving alumni donations until the university fully divests from weapons manufacturers.”
She is not alone in her acknowledgement of the Palestinians, throughout the ceremony, some students had adorned themselves in keffiyeh, worn items with the Palestinian flag, and one student held up the flag of Palestine as they walked across the stage.
At a UW senate meeting on June 10, three motions were passed: investment disclosure, reviewing institutional partnerships based on environment, social, and governance (ESG) factors, and including ESG factors in investing. @occupyuwaterloo, the Instagram account for the group behind the encampment, mentioned in a post about their upcoming press conference that their first demand has been met.
