Pro-Palestine protestors rallied yesterday in Schenley Plaza against a recent bill that would limit colleges from boycotting Israel.<\/p>\n
Advertised by Students for Justice in Palestine<\/a> at Pitt, about 30 people circled up on Tuesday afternoon to protest the Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act of 2026<\/a>, which would block federal student aid to colleges who participate in boycotts of Israel. Speakers at the protest denounced the bill, with some saying it would limit universities\u2019 actions toward Israel.<\/p>\n \u201cThe nature of this bill is clear,\u201d Gizelle Salsa, a leader of SJP, told the crowd.\u00a0 \u201cIt works to serve the interests of a foreign government that is committing genocide<\/a> over the actual needs of students here in the U.S.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on Sept. 3., the bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965<\/a> to prohibit institutions from being eligible for certain funds under the act if they participate in a \u201cnonexpressive commercial boycott\u201d of Israel. It also prohibits institutions that participate in certain programs under the act to \u201ccertify that students are not unreasonably obstructed from participating in academic programs in Israel.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n The Higher Education Act provided financial assistance to post-secondary students, with a purpose of strengthening the educational resources of colleges.\u00a0<\/p>\n In between chants of \u201cWhile we chant in Schenley Plaza, there are no schools left in Gaza\u201d and \u201cFree, Free Palestine,\u201d speakers said the bill would target the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement<\/a> and restrict pro-Palestinian activism. Some protestors insinuated Pitt is invested in Israel, calling for it to divest.\u00a0<\/p>\n Pitt declined to comment on whether its endowment is invested in Israel.<\/p>\n When asked, three protest speakers did not identify themselves to The Pitt News.\u00a0<\/p>\n Salsa told the crowd she believes the bill \u201centirely changes\u201d what students are entitled to under the Higher Education Act of 1965, believing that federal aid would be tied to the political demands of an external foreign power.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have the right to freely organize and urge that the institutions representing us are aligning with our values,\u201d Salsa said.<\/p>\n Salsa mentioned that 38 states<\/a>, including Pennsylvania, have enacted restrictions on Israel boycotts, believing that these laws wrongly conflate Zionism and antisemitism. She said she believes the bill would extend this initiative to the scope of universities.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cUniversities that are known for being the center for youth-led social movements and the collaboration of intellectual minds for action will now be the extension of the state\u2019s efforts in surveillance, repression, and attenuating the efforts of those who condemn the actions of Israel and the effects of Zionism,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Salsa went on to say she believes the bill contradicts the U.S. Constitution, in which boycotts are a constitutionally-protected freedom of expression<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThis bill is a direct offense to the freedoms of boycotts,\u201d Salsa said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Attendee Rosalyn Tosh, a junior student at Carnegie Mellon University, said she can\u2019t participate in any protests on CMU\u2019s campus or help paint its fence because she was banned from being on campus except for the purpose of attending class.<\/p>\n