Bucknell activism must extend beyond the classroom

I grew up under the hands of Palestinian parents who cooked politics for dinner and baked activism for breakfast. I spent the last half of my life in the Middle East and discussing politics was my 9-to-5.

My mother and father are the queen and king of finding any opportunity to bring politics and social justice into a conversation.

My incredible parents trying not to talk about politics

One thing my parents taught me as a child was the importance of intersectionality. What do I mean by intersectionality? Simply put, intersectionality means everything is connected, and we cannot talk about one form of injustice without speaking about another.

Intersectional activism involves looking at the different systems of oppression, whether they be based in gender, race, sexual orientation, ability status, religion, and so on, and understanding how they interact with and influence one another.

If I want to fight for the rights of other young Palestinians such as myself, I have to talk about the politics of Egypt. I have to learn about the philosophies of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. I have to study British colonialism in India.

So, my afternoons as a high school student looked a lot different then you might imagine. When I lived in the Middle East, the 3 pm school bell meant more than just the end of my last class. It meant it was time to go on a march for Arab women’s rights. It meant heading off to another conference regarding Palestinian human rights. It meant going to small book clubs talking about student activism.

When I moved to Chicago, I started to attend annual marches advocating for queer visibility and support for victims of sexual assault. I spent a fair portion of my sophomore year involved in the #BlackLivesMatter movement on campus.

Just last week, I went to the Women’s March in DC and briefly talked to both The Atlantic and Teen Vogue about the importance of ending discrimination against undocumented immigrants in the United States.

A sign from the Women’s March

Intersectionality is about caring for the histories and struggles of others, even if they have no direct relation to your own. Simply put, in the words of Dr. Gandhi: “Our activism cannot be centered around ourselves. We must be selfless.”

Intersectional activism on our campus is essential.

Sure, maybe there aren’t a ton of marches that you can go to if you want to be an intersectional activist, but there is another way: your education.

Carmen Gillespie and I with Reverend Sharon Risher

Being at Bucknell and away from a major city, I’ve realized that my education has taken over as a form of activism. I would encourage everyone to make use of these opportunities at Bucknell, from MLK week to the Diversity Summit, from Common Ground to the Community Dinners.

In meeting MLK speakers such as Iraqi photojournalist Haider Hamza, Dr. Arun Gandhi, renowned nonviolent activist and the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, and Reverend Sharon Risher, the daughter of a victim of the Charleston Church Shooting and an activist for gun law reform, I’ve learned about activism and freedom.

I’ve learned about political and social struggles that I have never heard of and found an incredible amount of strength in the education I have gotten outside of class. We put a lot of time and money into our education, but how much is our education worth if it doesn’t teach us to be better people?

If you are interested in learning more about student activism and intersectionality on our campus, please come to a student run forum TONIGHT at 7 p.m. in the ELC Forum.

Bring your friends, your minds, and your power.