By Anushka Vineet
At the second Student Representative Council (SRC) meeting of the year, a motion moved by the BIPOC Officer was unanimously passed, condemning ANU’s alleged censorship of a pro-Palestine chalk mural outside the BIPOC Base. The BIPOC space is an autonomous safe space on campus accessible to all BIPOC identifying students.
This follows ANUSA’s motion last year which condemned multiple instances of vandalism targeting the mural. At the meeting, BIPOC officer Aleesya Amirizal said that ANU failed to take adequate measures to ensure the preservation of the mural in the face of vandal attacks.
Prior to an event to restore the mural last year after it was fully erased, previous BIPOC Officer Selena Wania met with former Deputy Vice-Chancellor Grady Venille and claimed she showed more concern for the subject matter of the mural rather than then some BIPOC students feeling unsafe due to the vandalism.
More specifically, it is alleged that Venville believes that “the mural was impermissible” as it was “making people feel unsafe” by including the phrase “from the river to the sea”.
There are conflicting opinions on the intended meaning of the phrase “from the river to the sea”. Historically, it has been used by Palestinians to reaffirm their quest for sovereignty and national rights over their homeland. On the other hand, some Israelis believe that the phrase calls for the erasure of the State of Israel. In the context of the current Israel-Gaza conflict, this phrase remains contentious.
The BIPOC Department has publicly expressed their support for all Palestinian students.
Seconder to the motion, Tian Kaelin, stated “ANU likes to try forget that Palestinian students exist, despite their families currently being murdered by the tens of thousands. But the BIPOC Department doesn’t forget because that is our community.”
Following the meeting with the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, the Department decided to restore the mural.
However, the mural was removed 12 hours later by the university.
The BIPOC Department was contacted by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor alleging they failed to “comply with a university directive”. Amirizal stated that ANU threatened to disband the BIPOC space and send a cleaning bill, which they are yet to receive.
A university spokesperson did not clarify how university directives can be enforced, but did comment that the ANU “made clear last year, the University was willing to work with BIPOC members to install a mural in a way that was not exclusionary or caused harm”.
In the SRC meeting, Amirizal said that the BIPOC Base should not be used “as a bargaining tool”, and that “the university is not interested in protecting students: it is interested in controlling us in attempting to dictate the limits of our advocacy and to punish us for standing in solidarity [with Palestinians]”.
ANUSA President Will Burfoot expressed his support to “protect the department’s autonomy”. As per the motion, it is expected that Burfoot will release “a public statement denouncing the university’s censorship, intimidation tactics, and threats against the BIPOC Department while demanding ANU uphold its commitment to student safety, free expression, and anti-racism”.
The relevant actions in the motion are summarised below:
- Publicly condemning ANU actions
- Demanding transparency and accountability
- Protecting the BIPOC base’s autonomy
- Establishing clear protections for BIPOC political expression.
A university spokesperson stated that “significant consultation was undertaken to support the development of a permanent mural that adhered to relevant legislative and heritage requirements”.
“The University remains committed to freedom of expression, as well as working collaboratively to ensure the campus continues to be a safe, inclusive, and welcoming space for all,” said the spokesperson.
Observer will continue to report on this story as it develops.
Graphics by James Neal
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