Sparsely Attended Protests

 I was in two minds to go to a Palestine protest at the uni this morning.  Last Friday, I had walked past another protest without stopping because there were just a handful of students, and I didn't want to be the only staff member there. Why academics have been so hesitant to take a stand on Gaza is a post for another day. Protesting at one's workplace feels very awkward, especially if you are one of the few people protesting. But, I'm glad I did today, even though there were just ten of us. As we were standing there, we got quite a few supportive honks and fist raises from drivers. A guy in a fancy electric vehicle rolled down his word to hysterically stream "You are terrorists" to us, more proof that genocide apologists are becoming desperate. And, after a few minutes, I saw my head of school pass by, wheeling a large stroller. On another day, I might have averted my gaze, pretending not to notice here. But, today, I met her gaze and smiled. She smiled back and walked past, before turning around and retracing her steps to ask me what I was protesting about. She stood and chatted with us for more than five minutes, and she was distressed enough about the situation that tears rolled down her face. She is a mainstream economist to the hilt, and has all the social skills of an economist, which is almost none. She does nothing to hide her disdain for those of us who are employed on the teaching pathway in her department, and not on the research pathway, like her. As she left, she wished us all the best. This was a passing encounter and I have no reason to believe that she will use her position or privilege to push the uni on Gaza. But, her supportive demeanor warmed my heart, and made me feel optimistic that the current genocide is rousing the consciences of people far beyond the protest circuit.  It made me feel glad that I decided to go for the protest. Protesting can often feel performative or pointless or both but it does provide some soul-warming moments too.