**Please sign if you are a UBC nursing student, faculty, or alumnus**

 

We chose to become nurses to help and to heal, not just in our communities, but the global community of which we are a part. We are here because of a desire deep within us to do good and to advocate for those who cannot do so for themselves. As nursing students we are taught that it is integral to our practice to not only foster racial and cultural safety in our workplaces and in our lives, but that we must work diligently and with vigilance for the development and implementation of anti-racist practices and attitudes wherever we are [1].  

In addition to the 34,000+ lives taken in Gaza since October 7 2023 [3], more than 1,500 of our fellow healthcare workers have been targeted, attacked, injured, and killed by the IOF [6]. We stand proudly with our colleagues on the ground in Gaza and salute their bravery, their sacrifice, and their round-the-clock dedication to providing the greatest care in the worst circumstances. As we study for quizzes and practice our skills, they go without food, without sleep, and without even basic supplies as they do everything possible to stem the flow of innocent blood.

The ethnic cleansing and genocidal violence against Palestinians in Gaza and the increasing displacement and settler violence toward Palestinians in the West Bank and in occupied areas of Palestine represent the worst, most overt, and most violent forms of racism and colonialism there are, akin to the genocide and disenfranchisement enacted by the Canadian government against First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. As an institution of occupiers, settlers, and uninvited guests on this land, it is our duty and our honor to fight for and to fight with all people facing genocide, displacement, and disposession of their indigenous homelands. Why else would we begin every lecture with a land acknowledgment and display proudly on our website and with our words that we oppose colonial violence?

The School of Nursing claims to hold justice and equity as values, and to condemn all forms of racism and discrimination, especially structural forms of racism [4]. We, the students, strongly uphold these values and condemnations, and we are therefore demanding that the UBC School of Nursing publicly declare solidarity with the people and healthcare workers of Palestine, support for the pro-Palestinian student encampments, and condemnation of the genocidal violence of the Zionist state.

If these truly are our values, then our voice should be the loudest, and yet we have been silent. The time for this statement has long past, so let us join the UBC School of Social Work and the Institute for Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Social Justice in stating publicly and unequivocally that we, the UBC School of Nursing, stand with the Indigenous Palestinians against colonization, illegal settlement, and genocide, and vehemently condemn the war crimes and crimes against humanity being perpetrated against them by the Zionist state [2, 5].

Furthermore, we condemn the violence, displacement, and enslavement in Congo, the violent displacement of millions in Sudan, the internment of Uyghur Muslims in East Turkestan, the ethnic cleansing of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar, the violent take-over of Kashmir, the invasion of and genocidal massacres in Papua New Guinea, the ongoing aggression against Ukraine, the continuing colonial violence across Turtle Island, South America, Australia, Aotearoa, and the South Pacific, and anywhere innocent people and indigenous communities are oppressed, displaced, or killed.

Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere, and it is time for us to stand up and loudly say so. Free, free Palestine.

Proudly,

UBC Student Nurses for Palestine.

 

References

1. British Columbia College of Nurses and Midwives. (2022). Indigenous Cultural Safety, Cultural Humility, and Anti-Racism. Vancouver; BCCNM. https://www.bccnm.ca/ Documents/cultural_safety_humility/ps_companion_guide.pdf

2. Institute for Gender, Race, Sexuality and Social Justice. (2024, February 4). GRSJ statement on Palestine. Institute for Gender, Race, Sexuality and Social Justice. https://grsj.arts.ubc.ca/news/grsj-statement-on-palestine/  

3. Motamedi, M., & Siddiqui, U. (2024, May 6). Israel’s war on Gaza live: Israel hits Rafah after Hamas accepts truce deal .www.aljazeera.com​ https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2024/5/6/israels-war-on-gaza-live-israel-pounds-rafah-as-truce-talks-stall#:~:text=Meanwhile%2C%20talks%20in%20the%20Egyptian,on%20Gaza%20since%20October%207  

4. UBC Nursing. (2024). Mission, vision, and values. nursing.ubc.ca. https://nursing.ubc.ca/about/mission-vision-and-values 

5. UBC School of Social Work. (2023, November 24). UBC School Statement on Israel Palestine Conflict.socialwork.ubc.ca. https://socialwork.ubc.ca/news/ubc-school-statement
on-israel-palestine-conflict/  

6. United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. (2024, March 20). Today’s top news: Occupied palestinian territory, Haiti, Ukraine, Myanmar. www.unocha.org​ https://www.unocha.org/news/todays-top-news-occupied-palestinian-territory-haiti-ukraine-myanmar