A Time for Action

By Genevieve Buthod

A Time for Action

This past weekend, I had an incredible opportunity through Saint Xavier’s very own Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) group. I was able to attend a series of “We Divest” campaign training workshops with the American Friends Service Committee of Chicago. The event took place at DePaul University downtown, and after traveling up there for the evening, I was a little worried about how I was going to get home later that evening. Thankfully, the organizers invited me to stay for dinner, and I ended up staying at the hostel across from the HW Library with the other participants. I met so many student activists from all over the country, from Seattle to Baltimore. I learned so much from the event and have many new ideas about how to educate the student body (as well as the faculty) here at SXU.

As I mentioned to everyone there, I love going to a smaller school because it is not nearly as intimidating to approach the administration with your concerns. For instance, divestment from corporations that are profiting from the Israeli(-U.S.) occupation of Palestine is a pretty big task to ask of your school. At Saint Xavier, however, I feel we will be able to make some real headway because of the open environment and level of student-faculty engagement. On top of the program itself, I learned so much from the other student activists who attended to represent their universities. We were all able to share tips about student organizing and creative bold ideas for campus events. I was also able to re-connect with the AFSC’s Middle East Program Director whom I met at an event at Columbus Park earlier this year. It feels good to be making more Chicago-wide connections in my activism! If you want to get involved, you can start by checking out this website: http://wedivest.org/ and signing the petition.

To go along with that idea, one thing you can do as a student right here is to attend “My Name is Rachel Corrie,” a play based on the life of an American student who traveled to Palestine to help fight the occupation, and was killed by Israeli construction equipment because she was standing between them and a Palestinian home. It is an incredibly inspirational story that will spur anyone to direct action, so please give it a chance! It’s at 6:30 in the Fourth Floor Boardroom this Thursday evening.

On a lighter note, the SXU Jazz Combo concert went pretty well this past Friday (I hope some of you were able to make it!). Everyone played well, and just as importantly, I think we all felt good about the performance. This coming Friday at 7:30 in McGuire again is the Jazz Big Band concert, which will be a lot of fun if you can make it! Free to all students, as always. Hope to see you then!


Genevieve Buthod is a sophomore, and a double major in computer science and philosophy. She is a women’s studies minor, and thinking about a music minor as well. Genevieve is an officer in the Alliance (the GSA) and is a happy, healthy vegan. She is also involved with the Students for Justice in Palestine.