Written by Vasavi Singhal
Photography by Luka Lacey
LSESU’s Grimshaw Club and Palestine Society (PalSoc) collaborated on 11 November as part of PalSoc’s ‘Palestine in Conversation’ Speaker Series, inviting Francesca Albanese to speak at LSE. Around 100 students attended the talk in the SU basement venue, hosted by Gerry Simpson, the Chair in Public International Law at LSE.
Francesca Albanese is an international lawyer, academic, and the UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Her mandate is to document and report on the violations of international law committed by Israel.
It was a significant event for the organisers Kaviesh, Tasneem, and Ahmad. Ahmad, the president of PalSoc, considered this event important particularly in the context of LSE’s “vague guidelines around free speech” and the subsequent disciplinary procedures faced by the LSE 7. He praised Albanese for being “very vocal about the Palestinian issue”. Ahmad wanted Albanese to “reinforce…the right to protest on campus… and let us know what that entails”.
Kaviesh, Grimshaw Club’s president, emphasised the importance of keeping up the momentum from last year and creating a space for student voices: he wanted to host discussions that were “respectful, professional … [and not] anti-Semitic,” but still recognised the rights, sovereignty, and self-determination of Palestinians.
Tasneem, Grimshaw’s vice-president, wanted the talk to be “a form of resistance”. “Learning about the state of Palestine, the Palestinian flag,” were small actions Tasneem believed could bring people into “continual existence”. She expressed hope that hearing from someone who had engaged with legislative and systemic barriers in the UN and media would give students a framework to “make more meaningful change”.
Albanese praised the student movement for its “huge impact in awakening…a sense of how the injustice in Palestine is not just a local crisis, it’s a global crisis”. She highlighted how societies in the global North “contribute to … the maintenance of the occupation”.
Her message to LSE’s protestors was: “Stay strong, continue but always maintain a higher ground.” She said protestors should remain “peaceful” and “rational”, resisting provocation. Albanese urged protestors to “understand the system” they stand against, because “injustice in Palestine is a reflex of more global structural issues”, such as capitalism and imperialism.
Albanese went on to praise the “exemplary” work of LSE students and staff for their “huge contribution” in writing the ‘Assets in Apartheid’ report, saying she would use it in her own work. She thanked students for doing the job of their own institutions and the PalSoc President for “doing amazing work”.
She was insistent on the importance of divestment in universities, asserting that “universities should be apartheid-free zones”. She added, “universities should not invest in anything that is connected with illegal activities”.
Albanese criticised the “institutional [neutrality]” of LSE, arguing that the “genocide” is not about politics and is instead about human life and dignity. Later in a X post she called for “greater protection of [LSE’s] student body standing against Apartheid Israel”.
Her visit invited ‘#BanFran’ protests from the Campaign Against Antisemitism. This was met with pro-Palestine counter-protests, with dozens of police officers forming a ‘thin blue line’ to separate the two groups. Loud shouting and sirens were heard across campus. Albanese was brought in through the Three Tuns bar rather than the main SU entrance to remain unnoticed, but said she wasn’t concerned about controversy “as long as it helps us move forward”.
An LSE spokesperson said:
“LSE is committed to strengthening our approach to responsible investment in line with ou Environmental, Social and Governance Policy and we are currently inviting submissions to the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Policy review taking place this academic year. Alongside other matters, this review will consider current policies related to investment in fossil fuels and arms manufacturing. All students and staff are invited to share their views and ideas through LSE’s dedicated online form.”
“The institution as such does not take positions on political controversies in order to preserve space for free expression and thought on campus and to protect the academic freedom of all our faculty and students.”
“Freedom of speech and expression is of utmost importance to LSE, and underpins everything we do. Our free speech policy is designed to protect and promotes peaceful freedom of expression on campus. This includes the right to protest. We will take measures against protesters only if a protest crosses the line into illegality, is threatening or harassing to individuals, or significantly disrupts the community or important School business.”
