Amidst the protests at last night’s Ohio University Student Senate meeting, one international student stepped in to speak his mind.
Mohamad Al-Issa was one of more than 10 students who spoke out against President Kyle Triplett’s decision not to include a resolution condemning the wording of Senate Bill 5 in the agenda.
Al-Issa, a student from Jordan and the president of OU's International Student Union, explained that in his country, the public’s opinion isn’t valued.
He said couldn’t see why senate was deciding whether or not to vote on the resolution.
“It’s heartbreaking to see that you guys are negotiating if you should vote or not,” he said. “You’re allowed to vote. You should vote.”
During his speech, Al-Issa made it clear that he wasn’t trying to bash senate. He said that he supported Triplett in the spring election. He also reminded the audience multiple times that he wasn’t familiar the bill, but added that wasn’t the point.
“I feel voting is a right you should not give away regardless of the issue,” he said. “That’s something that makes us unique.”
Al-Issa said he was excited when President Barack Obama was elected president. To have a black president for the first time in the history of a country that is mainly white revived the image that the United States is spreading democracy, he said.
“Please don’t break that,” Al-Issa said. “Don’t break that democracy dream that international students come here to experience.”
tl674710@ohiou.edu
