ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A benefit show at a St. Pete church is helping raise money for victims of the war in Gaza as well as people arrested in April during a pro-Palestine protest on the USF campus.
13 people were arrested on USF campus, one being Simon Rowe.
“I'm still part of the movement for a Free Palestine despite the arrest,” Rowe said.
Rowe said he and many others are still paying the price for showing their passion.
“I've lost job opportunities because of this. One job rejected me because I had a trespass on my record and other people have been fired from their jobs,” Rowe said.
Funds from this benefit show will help pay legal fees for those arrested back in April. Money will also be sent to victims of the war in Gaza and to charities.
“We also have a flyer for our petition for our campaign to get USF to divest from Israel and also to reverse my expulsion and reverse Joseph, who is sitting behind me's suspension,” Victoria Hinckley with Students for a Democratic Society said.
“There's a level of accountability that's involved when you take certain actions meaning depending what the cause is shouldn't mean you're allowed to skirt certain laws based on this cause and not that cause,” Jonathan Ellis with the Tampa Jewish Community Relations Council said.
Ellis said he’s happy that USF will be reviewing policy this coming school year.
Under the proposed rules, any activity on campus must be complete by 5 p.m. and weekend activities cannot take place unless it is approved.
“They needed to make certain changes to ensure there was a higher level of accountability in things such as protests, demonstrations and alike,” Ellis said.
USF is also considering any modifications to campus space like adding signs and banners and using amplified sound must be pre-approved.
“For amplified sound, these rules aren't applied equally. They allow preachers to come on campus and harass women and non-binary people, but student groups try to use amplified sound they're almost always shut down immediately,” Rowe said.
Anyone who wishes to comment or post any feedback about the proposed regulations has until August 11th.