LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — For the second time in a week, close to 100 pro-Palestine demonstrators rallied at UNLV.
The crowd on Tuesday chanted about Israel being a "racist state" and called for university leadership to divest in any causes that might be supporting Israel's military actions in Gaza.
Unlike a similar rally on May 1, this time there were no pro-Israel counter-protestors there and no heated verbal exchanges. Campus police looked on as the rally went on — it began at 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday — but no disturbances were seen.
The rally was put on by a UNLV group called Students for Justice in Palestine. A woman who identified her self as one of the leaders of the group declined to an interview request by Channel 13.
UNLV right now pic.twitter.com/JBNXRcdeFF
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Alejandra Betancourt, a senior at UNLV who is set to graduate in a matter of days, was at the rally to support the student group.
"Palestinians around the world, they have been saying that we are their voices," Betancourt said. "They're not able to get the message out, so it's up to us, as students, to finally step up. There's power in numbers, so I wanted to show my support, for sure."
Last week, a group of pro-Israel students and others rallied on UNLV's campus, saying that antisemitic rhetoric has increased recently, including at UNLV.
On Tuesday, President Joe Biden denounced what he called a "ferocious surge" in antisemitism in America.
But Betancourt says the movement she's supporting is more of a "resistance" than anything else.
"With all the antisemitic talk, it's been harder to touch, but I think what people forget is that Muslim people are also Semitic people," Betancourt said. "It's more than just religion, it's more about land and money, things like that."
In a statement sent to Channel 13 on Tuesday, UNLV said school president Keith Whitfield and university administrators "continue to meeting with student leaders and faculty representing all views on this emotional issue."
The university did confirm that at least one such meeting happened on Tuesday.
