SJP’s Sabra campaign was indeed a victory, deserves administrative recognition

As a DePaul student, it would've been nearly impossible to miss the Sabra Hummus campaign last spring. An initiative of DePaul's Students for Justice in Palestine, the campaign sought to remove Sabra hummus from DePaul's shelf because of purported links to the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.

When the referendum failed, not because of a lack of support for SJP's campaign, but because an insufficient number of total students had participated in the referendum, many thought that the campaign had also failed. It seemed as thought the campus had settled into a hushed unease, and the campaign seemed to slip so easily from the collective experience of the campus.

I've returned to DePaul to find that SJP had actually succeeded in their campaign, and this success went unpublicized. Several of DePaul's food outlets now offer Chartwell's hummus and pretzels either in addition to, or in lieu of, Sabra selections. Chartwell's did not offer non-Sabra hummus last year, proving that DePaul's administration saw validity in SJP's campaign.

While SJP was not successful in completely removing Sabra hummus from university shelves, they did make change. Discourse shifted, students became active, and students took it upon themselves to contribute to a wider narrative of student engagement that is often lost.

While fascinated by this reality, there is also a concerned by the pervading silence. Why had no official statement been offered about the alternative selection? Why was SJP not recognized for its campaign efforts? Why were students largely ignorant of the alternative and why this alternative was now being offered?

While many responses could be offered for the questions posed above, I would rather not linger in speculation. The fact remains, many people are still unaware of the history of this alternative option of hummus even though the campaign is not even a year old.

There is a serious disconnect between the vast majority of DePaul students and the concerted efforts of their peers. While this could largely be due to student apathy, a problem beyond our campus boundaries, part of the issue was also due to the fact that the administration never made a final statement on the Sabra campaign or on the decision to offer alternative hummus options.

Therefore, for the sake of clarity and to inform an uncertain student body, I encourage DePaul's administration to make an official statement on this decision.

Regardless of whether or not the administration clarifies their decision, the Sabra campaign should not be forgotten. It is a testament to the power of student activism and the need for students to engage in critical discourse with one another. It rattled the stale status quo. It was an organic creation of knowledge beyond classroom walls, a testament to the real mission of the academy.

Congratulations, DePaul SJP, on a successful campaign.

I hope that the year ahead is abound with further opportunities for dialogue and peer-engagement as we seek to embody the various voices of the academy in our daily lives – activist, academic, or otherwise.