By Henry Nickerson | Associate Editor
On a snowy Friday February 10, students, faculty members, and community leaders filed into DiStefano Lecture Hall for the “No Ban No Wall” protest. After growing frustration with President Trump’s executive order banning travelers from seven Muslim-majority countries, as well as his promise to build a wall separating Mexico and America, senior Marrissa Ballard and junior Skyla Hudson decided it was time to take action. “With everything going on, we felt something needed to be said,” Hudson remarked. “We couldn’t just sit back and be a silent campus, because silence is siding with the oppressors.”
The protest was initially planned to be located on the Wakehurst lawn, but was moved inside due to a snow storm the previous day. Students arrived with signs reading “No ban no wall, freedom for all” as well as shirts reading “Love Trumps Hate” and “Immigrants Make America Great”.
“I think it’s important to be out here, be a part of a movement, and stand with those who have been persecuted in the U.S.,” said senior protest-goer Molly Corley.
The protest began with a speech by President Jane Gerety, RSM, reiterating the statement the university released last week condemning the ban. Dr. Sami Nassim, director of multicultural programs and retention, spoke next, citing personal anecdotes about his immigration from Egypt. Dr. Nassim closed with a warning to those in the audience, “History repeats itself. We are living history, and have the power to change what’s around us. Let’s not let history repeat again.”
Next, director of International Programs, Erin Fitzgerald, spoke about the importance of international students at Salve. Fitzgerald commented on the risk President Trump’s ban poses to the program that allows Salve Regina to admit one Syrian student whose education has been interrupted by war on full scholarship every year. One of those students, junior Araz Khajarian, spoke about this fear, as well as the divisiveness of putting up barriers. Khajarian mentioned walls in her hometown of Damascus, as well as Berlin, and the proposed Mexican border wall: “They see the history of the walls and know that it is something that hasn’t worked in the past.”
Two other juniors, Malysa Kettavong and Blanca Guzman spoke as well, both about personal experiences with immigration. Kettavong delivered a remarkable story about her parents’ individual journeys to the U.S., and their eventual meeting. “If it weren’t for the support and love for refugees in this country, I wouldn’t be here,” said Kettavong. Guzman spoke about her experience with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, and the attempted deportation of her father. “There are dreams on both sides of the border, not just one,” said Guzman.
The protest was concluded with a speech by alumni and theology professor, Dr. Jordan Miller, who was told to “bring the fire.” Miller began by quoting Malachi 3 and Hebrew 13, giving a religious perspective on the ban. He then gave a call to action to the administration, suggesting more scholarships to Muslim and refugee students, to declare Salve a sanctuary university, and to make their investment portfolio public in order to show the school’s spending is congruent with its mission statement. Miller ended his speech with a call to action to the students of Salve, as well, to actively resist the refugee ban and wall. “We need to be on the front lines, or we squander our identity,” concluded Miller, “or we’ll risk turning mercy into gibberish.”
