In the wake of the Hamas assault of October 7, journalists indignantly called out feminists for not addressing this violence sufficiently. The same critics have had little to say about the countless overlooked and ignored examples of sexual violence perpetrated against Palestinians in Israeli prisons and by IDF soldiers before and since that day.

We are seeing opposing world views play out in clashes between police and professors and their students across American college campuses. It is a harbinger of encampments that have already started to sprout here. Let us hope that authorities and institutions do not see fit to trample upon free speech and academic freedom, mistaking a call for life for its opposite.

In these times of conspiracy theory, critical thinking has never been more important. And as hate symbols proliferate, perhaps there is something to be gained from listening to hitherto marginalized voices and learning the lessons they are willing to share. Perhaps universities have a role to play in building an inclusive society. Perhaps social justice isn’t the bogeyman after all.