CNN's Fredricka Whitfield gave pro-Palestinian analyst an unchallenged forum to talk up the cause of anti-Israel protesters in colleges trying to push the U.S. to stop arming Israel.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD: So how will you be measuring the gains or the losses that have come from the variation of protests across college and university campuses in the U.S.?
OMAR BADDAR, MIDDLE EAST ANALYST: Look, I think there have already been significant gains. I mean, those protesters are the conscience of America at a time when American weapons are being used to kill literally tens of thousands of children. It's just an unconscionable situation, and the fact that, even in the face of official demonization from the rhetoric that we have seen not just from people like Tom Cotton and others, but many other people across the entire political spectrum. You also seen significant police violence, you also see counterprotesters, you know, attacking them. And yet the resilience of this protest movement and the fact that it's spreading rather than shrinking is a sign of -- that this is really a wakeup call for Washington -- that business as usual cannot continue while American weapons are being used for these kind of atrocities that Israel is actually currently committing in Gaza. And this is, you know, there is not going to be a way in which young people are just going to let this one go. The comfort that President Biden has coming into this upcoming election is also shaken by the fact that a significant portion of his own constituency is demanding a change in American policy not just as a matter of passive American opinion, but they're actually willing to really stand up and take significant risks in order to make their voices heard on this issue. So I think it has been incredibly successful so far, and I hope that there is a better response that we come to understand that you can't beat this protest movement down -- that the more you try to repress it, you only actually have the counter effect, and it's time to start listening to the legitimate demands of these protesters.
WHITFIELD; So I hear you when you -- you like the intensity, you know, of the protests and the voices of the many young people and what they're exerting, but we've even heard Biden this week who was asked, "Will this effect policy -- will it change policy?" He said no. So what, you know, isn't that what you want? You want this to provoke some sort of policy change or even perhaps changes among university and colleges in terms of how they are being asked to divest?
(BADDAR)
The Washington Post is reporting today that many students don't know how much or if at all certain universities or colleges have holdings to actually divest. And if that's the case, then how will these demonstrators know whether their demonstrations -- whether the encampments are at all influencing the very campuses where those encampments have been in terms of divesting? If they don't know whether the campus has any holdings at all, do you worry that the goal -- I guess there are too many variations of goals and what these demonstrations are really about?
BADDAR: Yeah, look, I mean, what we need primarily is transparency. That's part of how you negotiate with students. You can look at the case of Brown University as a prime example of how you actually should do these things where the administration saw that a progressive, conscientious movement is actually demanding change and refusing to basically disband these protests. And the way that they have responded is by saying, "Okay, fine, let's sit down and negotiate." I'm talking about voting on a resolution in the future about divesting from companies that do -- that are effectively complicit in Israeli atrocities against Palestinians. We need more of that transparency and beyond that even if institutions are not immediately transparent about what investments they do and don't have, I think the voice of this movement goes beyond just the immediate impact on the institutions and is effectively showing that there is a generational divide in this country that is very, very real -- that, even though in the case of Brown University, you have billionaires withholding their money and expressing disapproval about the fact -- about the way that we're granting the wishes of these demonstrators by agreeing to enter into these negotiations. Young people are standing their ground, and this is not going to be an issue that is going to go away. That, I think, should be clear to everyone that the status quo is no longer acceptable -- that we need a fundamental change in American policy where we can no longer allow Israel to continue behaving however it wants with blanket U.S. support diplomatically and militarily without ever questioning how that support is actually being used and how it's impacting real people. There is a generation that is conscientious that sees Palestinians as equal human beings and sees the loss of Palestinian life as being no less meaningful than the loss of Israeli lives. And that is something that we have not seen in Washington, and it's a matter of time before that is reflected because that generational change is very, very real.
WHITFIELD: All right, Omar Baddar, glad you could be with us today. Thank you so much.
