Photo Shutterstock Today, and last Thursday, pro-Palestine activists blocked both entrances to the Atlas building, where the Executive Board works. Their message: WUR must cut ties with Israel. Their frustration is real, but so is the question: does blocking access and rejecting dialogue brings us closer to ‘peace’ or push us further into division?
What good comes from cutting ties with Israel? Alienating institutions that do not control political decisions is not productive, especially when these institutions offer valuable academic and humanitarian benefits to WUR. For the greater good of our university, we should ask whether such actions have meaningful impact or just limit our own opportunities for learning and collaboration.
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is often simplified into a story of Palestinian victimhood versus Israeli wrongdoing. Yet the reality is more complex. Gaza is governed by Hamas, a designated terrorist organization that gained control with public support and has since fueled violence and hardship across the region. That’s part of the reality too, yet it is frequently left unspoken.
Symbolic acts like hunger strikes or blockades draw attention. But attention alone doesn’t create change. Dialogue does. Listening does. Seeking to understand, even when it is difficult, does.
At a university, we should be challenged, not only by others, but by ideas that makes us uncomfortable. This includes the media, and it includes ourselves.
If we care about justice, we must stop turning away from complexity. I urge Resource to strive for balanced journalism that reflects multiple sides of the story. And to my fellow students: stay curious. Question the headlines. Seek nuance. Because when only one side is told, the truth is lost, and with it, our ability to move forward together.
Meital Cohn, Master’s student Resilient Farming and Food Systems
