Palestinian student organiser Taimaa Sawaed told a recent UK Friends of Standing Together meeting about her work with the Jewish-Arab grassroots movement Standing Together, building dialogue between students and responding to tensions within Israeli society.
At a recent UK Friends of Standing Together meeting attendees heard from Taimaa Sawaed, a Palestinian student organiser with Standing Together, talking about the movement’s work and her role within it. Taimaa explained what her work was like and why she had got involved with Standing Together in the first place.
Taimaa told us that she had been involved with Standing Together since August last year, getting students organised on campus and creating spaces for dialogue between Jews and Arabs.
Taimaa got involved because of what she described as a “conversation that never happened”. There was an argument between a Jewish and a Palestinian student, during which Taimaa recalled a Jewish student saying that Arab students’ political opinions ‘didn’t matter’. This was followed by silence as nobody addressed what had been said. After the class, Taimaa went to the college administration but they did nothing about what had been said.
Taimaa then noted that “silence makes conflict worse” as it leads to people becoming more divided. There had been an opportunity for dialogue but nobody had the courage to take it.
Taimaa said this was the main reason she became a student organiser for Standing Together and now every small thing that happens they are going to talk about.
Now on a day-to-day basis Taimaa is involved in organising. This can involve speaking with students individually, coordinating with lecturers and bringing people together who would not normally work together, showing the diversity of people and opinions.
At the college, they have already built a great foundation.
On the first day of the semester Standing Together distributed flyers with QR codes linked to a WhatsApp group and talked to students about getting Standing Together established.
Taimaa and her colleagues have created a space for students who had problems, want to become politically active or found themselves in awkward classroom situations.
There are now 100 students involved, which shows the need for this kind of space.
Building dialogue on campus
There are two main challenges facing the student group. There are those who are politically divided and those who are overwhelmed in different ways. However, with time these challenges can be overcome.
Alongside political campaigns Standing Together also mount social campaigns. They recently ran a campaign about getting Wi-Fi on campus and they won. These sorts of social issues can bring students together; students may disagree politically but they all want Wi-Fi.
They have also held a silent demonstration at the entrance of the college about the increasing crime and violence in Arab society and what Taimaa described as neglect by the Israeli government. Taimaa said that there were only 11 students, but these included three students; one lost her brother last year and another lost her husband and found it hard to go outside her house but came to the demonstration to hold a picture. Another student was 20 years old and had witnessed the killing of a man in her city and attending the demonstration was a big deal. It gave all three of them a public space where their voices mattered and were being heard.
The previous weekend the students had held a two-day organising seminar bringing 58 students together to develop skills in building Standing Together on campus. Taimaa was part of the three-person organising team. This was now Taimaa’s fifth seminar and every time she sees people from completely different backgrounds coming together in search of a different reality. People left the seminar with hope.
The following week was student day at the Knesset on 19 May, bringing students together from across the country.
In a recent Haifa city council meeting somebody was verbally attacked for speaking in Arabic. This kind of behaviour is being normalised. Taimaa sees it every day and it happens on campus.
Four major issues
This year, Standing Together is working on four major issues:
- rising cost of living
- mental health issues
- crime and violence and the neglect shown by the Israeli government
- what Standing Together describes as increasing government oppression
Taimaa also noted that soon it would be Jerusalem Day when large groups of far-right Israelis march through the city. Taimaa described the event as a day of fear, harassment and violence for many Palestinians. Consequently, Standing Together has a large presence accompanying Palestinian residents through affected areas. There were 70 volunteers last year and more than 200 have signed up this year.
Another major issue for Standing Together is the growing crime and violence and neglect of the Arab community. Taimaa said more than 200 people in Arab communities have been killed in violent crime incidents in 2026 and families are living with constant fear. Standing Together is actively supporting these families. In response to the government neglect, Standing Together recently organised a national day of disruption.
Regarding the Israeli military action involving Iran, Taimaa said Standing Together was one of the first organisations to speak out against the escalation. They were present in demonstrations and actions – with students playing their part in those campaigns to stop further military escalation.
Students are also working on a campaign to get Arabs to vote in the election in Israel in the autumn.
Taimaa is also really proud that the movement works on issues of basic protection for people in southern Israel where they say they have supported the installation of more than 30 bomb shelters in Palestinian villages.
Taimaa also noted that war is not the answer and that people want to live in peace. Instead of always taking sides, she said that people should “think about the human aspect because that is what matters most”.
