By Cara Hene, Music Digital Editor
On Friday 19 April, several societies at the University of Bristol gathered in front of Senate House to protest the University of Bristol’s partnerships with various companies linked to supplying Israel with arms.
The peaceful protest began at around 1pm and lasted until 3pm.
Several students carried large banners during the protest reading: 'VC EVELYN WELCH ARMS COMPANIES KILLING KIDS' and 'FREE THE PEOPLE, FREE THE LAND'.
Smaller signs carried by students read ‘FREE PALESTINE, END ISRAELI OCCUPATION”.
Join us this Friday to protest @BristolUni's complicity in genocide! #FreePalestine #ArmsOffCampus #StopArmingIsrael pic.twitter.com/BhcTlkhNzk
— Bristol Students Occupy 4 Palestine 🇵🇸🍉 (@Brisoccupy4pal) April 13, 2024
The protestors handed out flyers with the claim the University is 'complicit in a genocide' through partnering 'with companies that arm Israel'.
Some partnerships they cited included General Dynamics, Boeing and Northrop Gumman. The protestors provided a QR code with more information about their protest.
Epigram spoke to the protestors on the scene, who said the event was made up of multiple student societies including Bristol Queers for Palestine, PalSoc, Socialist Workers Student Society, XR Youth for Bristol, Student Action Bristol and Bristol Occupy for Palestine.
The latter two societies have recently occupied the Wills Memorial Building, Victoria Rooms and Tyndalls Avenue, with similar calls to today’s protest regarding UoB’s partnerships with companies linked to Israeli weapons supply.
Student-led pro-Palestine activism has increased in Bristol since the Israel attacks on 7 October. The aftermath of this attack, involving increased bombing and military action between Israel and Palestine, has led to a humanitarian catastrophe in Palestine.
In a previous statement regarding students protesting the University's partnerships, a University spokesperson said:
'We respect our students’ freedom of speech and right to protest and our Vice-Chancellor is always happy to meet with students to hear their concerns.
'The University’s association with a wide variety of organisations helps drive innovative research and improves our students’ future careers. All our partnerships undergo stringent diligence checks and ethical reviews.'
Featured image: Amelia JacobBristol University offers support to anyone affected by international conflicts.
You can also contact the wellbeing teams by:
- telephone: +44 (0)117 456 9860 (open 24 hours a day)
- email: wellbeing-access@bristol.ac.uk
- completing the request wellbeing support form.
