Student activism on college campuses is nothing new. Protests, sit-ins, and handing out pamphlets have been going on for decades. Today, though, it is more important than ever to have a true understanding of what you stand for, as exposure to activism is becoming an inevitable part of college campus experience.

Students continue to have a voice. Parker’s current seniors, which is to say the college class of 2020, will be hearing such voices loud and clear. Last October at Yale University, for example, students made noise about offensive halloween costumes, claiming insensitivity and cloaked racism. At Bowdoin College, student government leaders were called to be impeached for attending a party where sombreros were worn and tequila served—while this demonstration of seemingly harmless recreation may have been offensive, they hardly seem to call for punishing campus leaders. It appears that students are hungry to have something to be upset about and quick to make their feelings known to the world.

But there is an issue that looms larger than any other—the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanction (BDS) Movement, which seeks to pressure Israel through means of increasing economic and political constraints to comply with the movement’s goals of ending Israel’s occupation of Palestinian land.

The BDS movement is gaining traction on college campuses across the country, including many that attract Parker students—the University of Wisconsin, Oberlin College, Columbia University, Northwestern University, the University of Illinois, Stanford University, and dozens of others.

Unlike the examples at Yale and Bowdoin, BDS has tremendous outside support providing programming, money, and platforms for students to make their case against Israel and, more significantly, to shut down opportunities for real discussion and debate with supporters of Israel.

The conflict between Israel and Palestine is a deeply complicated issue. Oftentimes, passion and emotion overpower facts and conversation, leading to unexpected realities of tension on college campuses. On-campus groups such as “Stand With Us” have been established to promote and defend Israel on campuses; however, the fervor and aggressiveness of BDS often overpowers their efforts— more media attention often adds to BDS’s publicity.

It’s increasingly easy to get swept up in the whirlwind of the BDS movement—as with many liberal movements, it is attractive, and will be to graduates of Parker, to help out those who are seen as the “underdogs.” But talking about such complex and often sensitive topics requires a level of knowledge and patience that students, unfortunately, do not always take the time to acquire. Only finding unbiased facts and listening to both sides will amount to a productive and insightful dialogue.

Students involved in the BDS Movement often use arguments based on firmly held convictions and heightened feelings rather than facts and research. For example, dangerously inaccurate buzzwords used to equate what’s taking place in Israel–words such as “genocide” and “apartheid”–are thoughtlessly thrown around, when in fact these characterizations are neither accurate or fact-based.  

What is more, while several student governments have passed pro-BDS bills, no administration has enacted these proposals, and most promise they never will. Ultimately, nothing comes out of this movement other than noise and attention for a cause that is not even clearly defined.

As Parker’s graduating seniors begin to attend college, we will continue to learn how to think critically, form our own opinions, and be exposed to ideas outside of the “bubble,” and BDS will inevitably be a topic that will come up on campus—directly to our faces.

If you do choose to engage in either side of this debate, just remember to take a step back from the energy and hype by listening to the other side. In a moment of confrontation, emotions run high, and summoning the facts is definitely not easy. The best way to be heard is not through loud voices, but through informed dialogue and respect.