On Tuesday, March 18, the Louisville chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine (LSJP) led a protest on the University of Louisville campus. The organization marched from the UofL’s George J. Howe Red Barn to the College of Business, where the Student Government Association (SGA) met and voted to send to committee a resolution for the university to divest from Israel-related businesses and funds. 

The march lasted for about 30 minutes. Chants ranged from the well-known (“From the river to the sea / Palestine will be free!”) to the unfamiliar (“UofL, take a side / divestment or genocide!”) to the divisive (“LMPD [Louisville Metro Police Department], KKK, IDF [Israeli Defense Forces], you’re all the same!”). The third was chanted once near the middle of the march and again towards the end—in front of four UofL campus police officers. 

Once the marchers, a group of about 100 people, reached the Business School, four organizers spoke from atop a landscaping wall in the courtyard. LSJP requested that all speakers be referred to by their first name only. 

The first speaker, Leen, is a UofL alumna and former LSJP president. The current president, Saeed, led most of the chanting and gave a final and improvised speech. 

“On May 15th, 1948, the State of Israel,” Saeed said. “My maternal grandparents were in Jerusalem. And after May 15th, 1948, they were displaced from their homes.” 

Saeed told his grandfather’s story of dying in Jerusalem, the city he was born in, under Israeli occupation. 

“He could only visit it through checkpoints, through visas, through this card, through that card. F— that.” he said. “We know that this is not a unique story.”

The LSJP protest came a few days after the arrest and detention of Mahmoud Khalil, a pro-Palestine activist and Columbia University student who led many of last year’s controversial encampments. Even though he holds a green card and is married to an American citizen, Immigration and Customs Enforcement is working to deport him, although he has not officially been charged with a crime. 

“We’re here because it’s the right thing to do and we will not back down despite what President Trump and his cronies tell us to do,” said Bradley Price, LSJP’s press liaison.

On Monday, March 17, Israel broke the fragile ceasefire with air strikes that have killed hundreds of Gazans. But, even if a ceasefire were to hold, LSJP is determined to continue promoting its mission. They’ve been demonstrating consistently for the past year and show no signs of stopping. 

“LSJP exists to support the Palestinian people,” Price said. “Whether there is a permanent ceasefire announced, LSJP will continue to fight for the rights of Palestinians.”

Ahead of the protest, LSJP hosted an Arts & Crafts Fundraiser in the university’s Swain Student Activities Center. Members created and sold t-shirts, tote bags, baked goods and more to fundraise for their divestment campaign. 

“This is just the beginning,” Lin, another speaker at the protest, said. “We are not going to stop until UofL cuts its ties with Israel’s atrocious apartheid state.”

At the demonstration outside the College of Business, there was a small police presence, but there were no incidents or counterprotesters present. 

The SGA meeting was held inside the College of Business’s Horn Auditorium, and covered a multitude of student issues. Upcoming student activities such as tailgates and Women’s History Month events were discussed, as well as issues such as old classroom projectors and communication from President of the University of Louisville Kim Schatzel. 

The resolution, entitled “A Resolution for Ethical Investment, Divestment Transparency, and Accountability at the University of Louisville,” was co-written by LSJP and Daydrianna Jeffries, President of the Kent School of Social Work. Jeffries, who was one of the speakers at the evening’s rally, spoke in favor of the resolution’s message. 

“Tonight, we will have a historic opportunity. An opportunity to reaffirm that students’ voices matter,” Jeffries said to the crowd at the protest. 

The resolution, which was read at the SGA for the first time on the March 18 meeting, calls on the university to disclose its endowment to the public in an accessible manner and create a board to identify and divest from investments that are tied to Israel.

Senators motioned to suspend rules and pass the resolution, while others motioned to hold a secret ballot. The SGA Senate rules require a resolution to be read twice and sent to committee, and after a somewhat contentious debate, the board sent the resolution to committee. 

“For far too long, students have been kept in the dark about where their tuition dollars, student fees and university investments are going,” Jeffries said, “It’s unacceptable that we as students may be funding oppression, war and environmental destruction without our knowledge or consent.” 

The resolution also calls on the university to hang a Palestinian flag amongst the Wall of Flags, condemn the destruction of Palestinian universities and terminate partnerships with companies such as Boeing and IBM. It will be read for a second time, and likely voted on, on March 27 at 5 p.m.

LSJP responded quickly to the SGA decision, replacing an open mic night on Friday, March 21 to an emergency town hall meeting to discuss recent events. Another rally, although the location is not yet known, is planned for the second reading of the resolution. 

President Schatzel did not respond to requests for comment on March 18 and 19. 

This story was originally published on Manual RedEye on March 20, 2025.