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Last Updated on April 26, 2024.

Washington – Win Without War Executive Director Sara Haghdoosti released the following statement responding to scenes of police violence at university protests:

“The use of state violence against peaceful protestors is unacceptable. Police batons deployed against students calling for peace in Gaza are not a source of safety on campus, nor are they a bulwark against antisemitism. They hurt people, impinge on fundamental liberties, and serve an extreme right-wing agenda that threatens Jews, Muslims, and the right to protest across the country. University leaders and government officials must take steps to protect students exercising their right to protest, not enlist police to attack them. 

“Antisemitism and anti-Muslim bigotry are on the rise and serious issues nationwide, including on college campuses. The people endangered by these scourges deserve better than to be the targets of cynical political ploys or to be used as excuses for violent repression. No one is made safer by police violence, and politicians who say otherwise are only attempting to sow division for their own reprehensible ends. What we need from our leaders right now is to de-escalate, permit protests, and not allow state violence against people exercising their fundamental rights.”

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Win Without War is a diverse network of activists and national organizations working for progressive foreign policy in the United States.

April 26, 2024