Anti-Israel student group 'disaffiliates' from university after suspension

Earlier this month, an anti-Israel student group at the University of Wisconsin–Madison published a statement explaining its decision to “disaffiliate” from the school after being suspended by the university administration.

The group was formerly called Mecha de UW–Madison, but has changed its name to Mecha de Teejop. It announced its decision to “disaffiliate” from the university on July 4. 

The group had reportedly been under investigation by the university for allegedly inscribing anti-Semitic slogans in chalk near the university’s campus at the end of the spring 2024 semester.

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The chalkings included slogans such as “Al-Qassam you make us proud, kill another soldier now,” “Al-Qassam show us how, kill another soldier now,” “Power to Hezbollah,” and “Power to Ansrallah [Houthis] seize them all.”

”Al-Qassam” refers to the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the terrorist group, Hamas. 

Following the investigation, the group was suspended by UW-Madison’s Dean of Students on May 6.

In its statement published on July 4, the pro-Palestinian student group denied that it wrote the anti-Semitic slogans in the chalking incident, calling the accusations “manufactured controversies” used to justify “settler-colonialism.” 

“Of course our organization would never write nor condone the explicitly anti-Jewish sentiments of which we are allegedly accused of chalking,” the group wrote, “but we are not here to engage in these manufactured controversies which are created and weaponized by zionists as a shield for their complicity in settler-colonialism, ethnic cleansing, and genocide of the Palestinian people.”

“Nor do we believe our position must be one of defense, allowing the oppressor to control the narrative,” the statement continued. “If anything, it is UW Madison administration who should feel irredeemable shame for their active participation and support of the occupation and genocide of the Palestinian people.”

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The group also condemned the university’s usage of the term “terrorists” to describe terrorists. Mecha de Teejop referred to terrorists as “anticolonial resistance factions” and said they are “formations actively and valiantly defending Palestinians from their brutally violent zionist oppressors.”

Hamas was officially designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. Department of State in 1997.

Campus Reform has contacted the University of Wisconsin–Madison for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.