Questions remain about how Western Washington University should handle controversial speakers
A Western Washington University protest this spring brought to light concerns about the university’s ethical guidelines and student freedom of speech when a tour sought to bring Israel Defense Force soldiers to campus. While the university made a last-minute decision to not host the event due to the organizer’s safety concerns, it remains unclear how such events will be handled in the future.
Tours meant in part to “trigger” university students have been in the national spotlight for years. After the death of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, conservative commentators Ben Shapiro and Steven Crowder announced reignited campus tours aimed at debating college students and promoting free speech. Kirk used Western as a frequent talking point surrounding DEI policies and Alma Clark Glass Hall, which has a floor reserved for Black affinity housing that Western describes as a program that “explores and celebrates the diversity of Black and African American people and culture.”
The international speaker tour of Israel Defense Force reservists across 36 college campuses called “Triggered: The Ceaseless Tour” is one more entry calling to question the balance between infringing on free speech rights and ensuring student safety.
Western’s chapter of Students Supporting Israel and the broader movement — a “pro-Israel, international, student-led campus movement that supports the State of Israel” — advertised Western as one of 36 college campuses hosting a stop on the “Triggered: The Ceaseless Tour” event in April. Described as a “meaningful conversation with IDF reservists sharing firsthand experiences following the Oct. 7 attacks and the war that followed,” participants were invited to “hear their stories, gain insight and engage in discussion with an opportunity to ask questions.”
In response, the Divest Apartheid Coalition — a student group led by Western’s Arab Students Association, Jewish Voices for Peace and Students for Justice in Palestine — began an email campaign directed at Western’s administration. In a statement released on Instagram, a QR code to an email template titled “Point of Safety: Do Not Allow IDF Soldiers On Our Campus,” was provided for students to fill out and send, citing safety concerns.
“As students on this campus, we have a right to ask for this event to be cancelled,” read the statement. “Members of a military ruled to be committing a genocide in Gaza, as well as continuously escalating violence in the West Bank, Iran and Lebanon, are not welcome on our campus.”
In 2026, the United Nations released a report stating that Israel has violated international law by upholding systems of apartheid, following a 2025 report released by the United Nations concluding that Israel has committed genocide in the West Bank, and a 2024 United Nations report citing the illegality of Israel’s occupation of Palestine.
Western’s Senior Director of University Communications John Thompson said that the university’s decision to not host the event wasn’t based on the program’s content or purpose, but rather the university’s inability to adequately prepare in the available timeframe.
Will Simon, Western’s Students Supporting Israel president, said that the tour was moved to the nearby Stateside apartments on North State Street following an influx of concerning messages Simon received through the club’s social media and the event’s RSVP link.
Simon said that some of the messages he received surpassed political criticism of Israel and the IDF and devolved into antisemitic comments and personal threats.
“As a student (and) as a person that wants to learn and wants to understand other cultures, I think this would’ve been a really empowering event,” said Simon. “Sadly, it didn’t go the way that it should have.”
Due to the messages, attendance became limited to roughly 20 pre-approved individuals. According to management, Stateside was not aware of the event until after it began.
“I will not stand for violence or any tolerance of it,” said Simon in an interview. “I understand that when it comes to bringing IDF soldiers (to campus), that has a nervous impact on people that are of Arab descent. But threatening violence, threatening to murder us, I find that highly disgusting.”
At 2 p.m. on the planned day of the tour, the coalition led a protest on Western’s campus beginning at Red Square and ending on the lawn of Old Main, where the organizers were joined by speakers from Seattle’s chapter of the International League of People’s Struggle, Western’s chapter of Anakbayan USA, Western Associate Professor of Ethnic Studies and scholar-activist Nada Elia and Vice President of the Whatcom Peace and Justice Center, Yoav Litvin.
“You can not debate those who deny the humanity of others. You cannot reason with those who abandon truth, morality and accountability. That is why this event should have never been given a platform in the first place,” Litvin said. “You cannot treat propagandists for genocide as partners in a dialogue.”
Simon shared a different perspective.
“The two IDF soldiers that we brought, their stories are of heroism,” he said in an interview. “People were saying that they were these horrific people, that they’re Nazis, awful human beings, baby killers, genociders, everything like that,” said Simon. “If those people had come to our thing, they would’ve been absolutely shocked by the stories they were telling.”
Roughly two years prior to the event, on May 29, 2024, Western’s President Sabah Randhawa and representatives of the Divest Apartheid Coalition signed and released a Memorandum of Understanding following a two-week long student-led protest encampment. In the memo, Western stated that as an institution, it “opposes and condemns all acts of genocide, ethnic cleansing, and other activities that violate safety, security, and fundamental human rights.”
Western did not respond to a request for comment regarding the Divest Apartheid Coalition’s safety concerns, plans for student security at future events and whether the proposed tour was in alignment with the university’s ethical policy.
“The normalization of violence against people of color is a narrative that continues to plague the discussions surrounding human beings and their disenfranchisement,” said speaker Farouk el-Zaatari of the ASA. “To that end, we identify (Triggered: The Ceaseless Tour) held by the Students Supporting Israel of WWU to be an event that violates Western’s promise of diversity, equity, and inclusion as it glorifies the actions of soldiers, many of whom are guilty of ethnic cleansing, mass murder, land theft and rape, to name a few.”
Following the protest, the coalition, International League of People’s Struggle and Anakbayan WWU released a joint statement through Instagram on April 18, and a follow-up statement on April 20. While the organizers saw success in the event taking place off campus, they also expressed frustration at Western’s lack of recognition regarding their concerns.
Simon said he felt that the event was an overall success. While he had intended for it to be held on campus as a large and inclusive event, he felt that the event was well done and that he considered it an honor to meet the soldiers.
Elia, who is a prominent Palestinian diaspora activist, author and organizer in addition to her work at Western, considered the event having been moved a “victory in a long, protracted battle that is not over, but one we know that we can and will win.”
“We are told again and again that Western is committed to maintaining a safe and supportive environment for all,” said Elia. “The presence on campus of soldiers who promote an ideology that is committed to our annihilation is not compatible with maintaining a safe and supportive environment.”
—By Jae Ranney
Internship sponsored by Puget Sound Energy