With a single snare drum as their accompaniment, dozens of marchers walked down Kirkwood Avenue in almost complete silence — until they sang.
“This land is your land, this land is my land...”
In their hands were white candles and signs bearing messages such as “love is stronger than hate” or “refugees welcome here.”
One passenger leaning out of a passing car yelled, “Fuck the refugees,” as marchers circled the Monroe County Courthouse.
A driver in another car screamed, “You’re wasting your time,” when the procession crossed Walnut Street, to return to the Sample Gates.
But the marchers did not engage. They stayed mostly silent, only singing “This Land is Your Land” again as they neared the Sample Gates, with leaders of the march yelling to them, “Louder! Louder!” as they continued their procession.
Students, faculty, staff and Bloomington residents gathered for the Hoosiers for Syrian Refugees March on Saturday afternoon at the Sample Gates.
“We’re challenging these negative and completely false perceptions that Syrian refugees and the people who support them are in any way promoting violence,” organizer and IU junior Dana Khabbaz said. “We heard the heckling, and we expected it, but the police were there and they were awesome at protecting us. Everyone reacted really wonderfully and kept in mind that our overall goal was to maintain the peace and promote a very peaceful message of welcome.”
The event, which advocated for the acceptance of Syrian refugees into the United States and Indiana, started with a march to the courthouse and back to the Sample Gates.
Khabbaz said the event was created when Gov. Pence said Indiana would no longer accept Syrian refugees Nov. 16 after the terrorist attacks in Paris.
“We want to accept Syrian refugees into our communities, into Indiana, into the United States because we believe it is our moral, American and human obligation,” Khabbaz said.
Khabbaz, a first-generation Syrian-American, is the co-president of the United Nations Association on campus.
She worked with more than 10 partner organizations and entities from IU and Bloomington to organize the march.
After returning to the Sample Gates, Khabbaz and six other speakers addressed those gathered, and the event concluded with a “photo petition” of attendees.
The petition was a picture of the marchers with signs saying, “refugees welcome,” which will be sent to government officials.
It was conducted with the help of petition website MoveOn.org, the nonprofit and political action committee that reached out to offer signs, funding and publicity for th event.
Attendees of the march included students, such as graduate student Amanda Lanzillo, who is a part of Bloomington Against Islamaphobia, one of the organizations that co-sponsored the event.
“I think that it’s important to come out and stand up to Gov. Pence and show both him and the rest of the country that Indiana isn’t a place willing to kowtow to this fear-mongering,” Lanzillo said. “We want refugees here. We believe they’re an important part of our community, and we’ll do whatever it takes to make sure they’re able to resettle in a welcoming place like Bloomington.”
The event also attracted Bloomington residents, including Valerie Merriam.
“I don’t believe the policy that our governor has put forward is rational, let alone legal,” Merriam said. “I stand in solidarity with refugees who have been thoroughly vetted for over two years.”
During her speech, Purnima Bose, professor of English and international studies, said Syrian refugees must be investigated by the Department of State, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Defense before acceptance into the U.S.
She also said she believes the U.S. can accept more refugees than the 10,000 President Obama proposed.
“Given that 4.3 million Syrians have fled the ubiquitous violence of their country, the Obama administration should be faulted for its shamelessly anemic response to this humanitarian catastrophe,” Bose said.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana filed a lawsuit Nov. 23 against Gov. Pence for his attempt to disallow Syrian refugee settlement.
Jim Spangler, member of the Board of Directors for the ACLU of Indiana, said the ACLU believes the Pence administration’s decision to disallow the settlement of refugees in Indiana violates the Constitution.
“We’re calling on the governor to rethink his approach and to stand up for our shared American values of justice and freedom and a place for people who are seeking safety and liberty,” Spangler said. “If we don’t fight back now, history really will not look kindly upon us.”
Khabbaz said Bloomington Against Islamaphobia, of which she is a member, has been working on petitions and letters to representatives on the Syrian refugee issue.
She said she hopes the march will give momentum to legal efforts with regard to bringing refugees to Indiana.
“It was very inspiring to see this many people care and this many people come to march with us and listen to our speakers and engage with the issue,” Khabbaz said. “I really hope that it actually translates into policy changes as well. I think what we’ve demonstrated here is people care about the issue and people really do want Syrians accepted in Indiana.”
