An Australian student from Condell Park High School in Sydney was denied attending his school’s formal after wearing a Keffiyeh for his graduation ceremony, Australian media reported.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported on Tuesday that the school might allow the student to attend the event if he agrees not to wear the keffiyeh and to drop his complaints against the school.
Murat Dizdar, the New South Wales Education Department Secretary, reportedly offered to meet with the student to resolve the issue in order for him to attend the formal.
The school’s decision has prompted anger in the community with accusations of racism circulating on social media and an online petition protesting the educational institution’s move.
A protest by over 100 students, parents, and pro-Palestinian protesters was staged on Tuesday outside Condell Park High, calling on the school to change its position. During the protest, a statement written by the unnamed student was read.
“The student was at the school for 5 years and they ban him from the formal over a piece of cloth that has such a deep meaning. But they can’t stand for it. Why? Because they are supporting genocide?”#GazaGenocide #condellparkhttps://t.co/yOuQJ8s9NG
— Socialist Equality Party (Australia) (@SEP_Australia) November 28, 2024
“I wanted an apology and to be allowed to attend the formal. This request was sent to the school, the department, and the minister. The response came over three weeks later, in a letter from the department’s lawyers, they said that the school had done nothing wrong,” the statement indicated.
“They also said that in order for them to allow me to go to the formal, I had to agree not to wear my keffiyeh at the formal … and to drop any and all claims against the school and the department,” the student said.
Teachers and activists mobilized at Condell Park High School in Australia to condemn their racist action of banning a Palestinian student for wearing a keffiyeh to graduation. pic.twitter.com/tHA1sqFwil
— V PALESTINE 🇵🇸 (@V_Palestine20) November 26, 2024
The student’s older sister labeled the treatment of the school as unjust, questioning why other students could wear their cultural attire while her brother could not.
“The keffiyeh is a centuries-old garment worn by my family, grandparents, great-grandparents and many others in the Palestinian community,” she reportedly added.
Genocide Continues
Flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire, Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza.
Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 44,330 Palestinians have been killed, and 104,933 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7, 2023.
Moreover, at least 11,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.
LIVE BLOG: ‘Most Severe Bombardment since WWII’ | Central Gaza under Fire – Day 420
Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire’.
Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
The Israeli war has resulted in an acute famine, mostly in northern Gaza, resulting in the death of many Palestinians, mostly children.
The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
Later in the war, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians began moving from the south to central Gaza in a constant search for safety.
(PC, MEMO)
