Kashmir Awareness Day at UCLA Draws Large Crowd
By Abbas Charlie
Pictures by Anwar Khawaja
Kashmir Awareness Day was held by the Pakistani Student Association (PSA) on March 16, 2012 at the UCLA’s Bruin Plaza. The event was co-sponsored by the Consul General of Pakistan Riffat Masood and Sameer Moosani. According to Abbas Charlie, President of the PSA at UCLA, the event was “imperative not only to South Asians but also to the entire UCLA community.” He stated that “many people overlook and are oblivious to the atrocities that Kashmir endures even today, and our duty as South Asian Americans is to inform and display the reality of this region.”
Many citizens of America do not know why this region is a disputed territory, which leads to ignorance and disregard. Armed with a timeline of facts and pictures, PSA along with the Consul General, displayed on a wall the cruel and inhumane treatment of civilians throughout history. This event was mainly to express solidarity with and increase awareness of Kashmir and the struggle of its people to win freedom from Indian rule. Although PSA did not make this event as a political statement, they let students explore facts themselves and also sought to educate students about the unlawful occupation of Kashmir.
The event attracted over 300 people in the short span of a few hours. Abbas Charlie hopes that it will prompt other universities to raise awareness about the atrocities taking place in Kashmir.
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