SGB issues statement regarding community and recent protests, student activist organizations respond

Following the second pro-Palestinian encampment at Pitt, the Student Government Board released a statement on July 5 expressing support for on-campus Jewish organizations and condemning discrimination in the campus community. Progressive Students for Change at Pitt, a pro-Palestinian activist organization, responded by saying SGB has “misrepresented” their cause.

SGB began its July 5 statement by referring to its April 28 statement regarding the first encampment and saying it will “continue to use our platform to voice the concerns of students.”

“While our previous statement acknowledged only one set of opinions, we want to affirm and maintain that the Student Government Board is a representative of all students,” the statement read. “We take our mission and our responsibility to students very seriously and we will continue to center our work around the concerns of feedback we receive.”

Progressive Students for Change at Pitt, in a statement jointly posted by Pitt Apartheid Divest and Students for Justice in Palestine at Pitt, said SGB’s latest statement “effectively negates its previous statement” which offered support for pro-Palestinian protesters.

In a statement obtained by The Pitt News, SGB said it “affirm” both its April 28 and July 5 statements and that the latter “reflects the concerns of students and groups that have reached out to us.”

“Our main priorities are advocating for the concerns, interests, needs, and overall welfare of our community, and we hope to do so through continuous conversation and engagement with all students,” the statement read.

The July 5 statement from SGB continued by voicing support for Hillel, Chabad and Student Coalition for Israel at Pitt. This comes after pro-Palestinian encampment members initially called for the “termination” of Pitt’s Hillel chapter and Student Coalition for Israel at Pitt. However, the group altered this statement on June 11, clarifying it instead wants Pitt to condemn the two organizations for “promoting Zionist ideology and propaganda while excluding dissenting voices.”

Progressive Students for Change at Pitt continued their statement by saying the July 5 SGB statement “misconstrued” their cause and took a misguided “all sides are equal” approach.

“We would like to call to attention that the statement called for an end to the false conflation of Judaism with Zionism that has been proliferated by Hillel,” the statement read. “The SGB has misrepresented this message and blindly supports Hillel in its exclusion of non-zionist Jews and hegemony over Jewish spaces.”

SGB continued its statement by condemning “all forms of discrimination” in the campus community and supported “a culture of diversity and compassion.”

“We will not tolerate any condition of hatred or violence targeted at students, individuals, or our community by any actor, including the University,” the statement read. “We will continue to utilize our platform to uplift students and foster a community that perpetuates inclusivity and safety for all students.”

Progressive Students for Change at Pitt continued its statement saying SGB is failing to “center the voices of the most marginalized.”

“SGB has demonstrated to the entire Pitt community that it is more interested in moral posturing than in actually supporting the communities which have been most affected materially by the ongoing genocide in Palestine,” the statement read. “The SGB has cemented that they do not care about ensuring the rights of the most marginalized students on campus.”

SGB concluded its statement by providing resources for Pitt community members to receive support. In response to Progressive Students for Change at Pitt’s statement, SGB added that it is “committed to continuous dialogue and advocacy” on behalf of the student body.

“We hope to move towards a future of accountability and progress while also approaching our interactions with kindness and care,” the statement read.

Progressive Students for Change at Pitt concluded its statement by calling on students to “organize outside of SGB” and “build powerful alternatives to our current system.”