La Raza Student Organization stands in support of Troy
Buckner-Nkrumah's column (Gater, May 4). Buckner-Nkrumah spoke not only for himself, but for the SF State students who rallied theirsupport behind the Unified Student Movement.
Buckner-Nkrumah's reference to the biased coverage of some Golden Gater reporters is right. The lack of objectivity leaves room for party-influenced articles with lies and biased descriptions of campus politics. The power of the press is immense, and more responsibility must be demonstrated by the Golden Gater.
The Golden Gater is partly responsible for turning an anti-Zionist political stand into an alleged outbreak of anti-Semitism and Jew hatred. We cannot be anti-Jewish. Jewish people come in all colors and ethnicities. Latinos, Africans, Asians, Semites and whites can all be Jewish. This isn't a race or religious issue. It is a political condemnation of colonialist, racist Zionism.
Buckner-Nkrumah is right to ask what the Student Struggle slate struggles for. They are more worried about doubling money to student organizations than defending students against Proposition 187, arrests inside the classroom or fee hikes. It's easier to buy votes, than to struggle. Why not challenge the board of trustees or President Corrigan to fight Sacramento and preserve what little education we have left? That demands a real struggle -- something Struggle knows nothing about.
Struggle did break elections code regulations. The USM did not. These violations were documented, witnessed by AS Elections Committee members, further approved by the legislature and are available to students. The other violations -- among them the illegal use of electronic mail to campaign -- were also proven.
We cannot ignore the influence the Zionist lobby has. AIPAC -- the top Zionist political action committee dictates US policy against the oppressed Palestinian people. Locally, the American Jewish Council chose to represent Struggle not because Buckner-Nkrumah hates Jews, but because the AJC is an ardent supporter of Zionist oppression in Palestine. It sees any opposition as a threat to uncovering the lies that the Israeli government disseminates throughout the world. Zionism oppresses Jews; it perpetuates ignorance much like the Nazis kept Germans ignorant of their government's atrocities against innocent Jews.
Nazism is unpardonable. Zionism is unpardonable.
Buckner-Nkrumah supports Hamas and the Palestinian liberation struggle. La Raza Student Organization also pledges its full support behind the Palestinian people in their struggle. Their land was stolen and bargained-off by the British to a few thousand Zionists. The majority of the world's Jewish people live outside of occupied Palestine. Yet, the Zionists claim that Israel is the embodiment of the Jewish people: their homeland. That is a lie. In this context, Zionism, racism, anti-Semitism and Nazism are all the same evil.
La Raza Student Organization and the rest of the PC pledge our continued support for progressive activism on campus. We have a lot to teach. We also have much to learn. Not recognizing this would make us demagogues and fascists. We choose to leave that route to ardent nationalists who know no other struggle but their own. We look forward to the day when we can understand each other's struggles, so that we may fight together in the spirit of unity, equality and social justice.
Franz Gwiazdon Julio is an international relations junior and a member of the La Raza Student Organization.