<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=3DJQmV_0wB0jrJp00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=3DJQmV_0wB0jrJp00" width="1200" height="628" >The Salve Regina campus is enriched by the powerful voice of Mohamad “Omar” Kaziz, a student activist who brings his passion and leadership to not only the university but also the Newport community. Originally from Damascus, Syria, Kaziz is a senior global studies major with minors in political science and entrepreneurship. Throughout his academic career at Salve, he has organized countless protests, vigils and other events to make the stu­dent body aware of what he sees as pressing global and campus issues. As Kaziz embarks on his final year at Salve Regina, we sat down to re­flect on all that he has accomplished.How would you describe Damascus, Syria?There’s the good and the bad. If I were to paint a picture for you, I would say it’s a beautiful city. It’s the oldest capital in history, but it has been ravaged by war since I was born. My childhood consisted of studying under candlelight be­cause the power would cut out for 12 hours. We had one bottle of water a day for drinking, show­ering, all of it. Still, I would say I am privileged to a great level. I’ve lost members of my extended family to war but not direct members. What was your childhood like?There were bombings every­where. War really separated me from my family. Everyone fled abroad, but because my dad is involved in international business, we got stuck. We left for Lebanon initially. It’s a journey that usually takes an hour and a half. It took us 12 hours to get there because of the amount of people who were migrating. My parents told me and my sib­lings that it was a vacation because we were so young. We stayed there for a month, then my parents were having conversations about what to do next. We went to Oman for a year, then my siblings left to study. One went to Dubai, the other to Beirut, Lebanon. Eventually, my parents and I had to return to Syria because we couldn’t afford it anymore. We went from being wealthy to not being able to afford groceries. It taught me a lot about being grateful and perseverance. Did your activism start in Syria?There are certain parts of my life where I faced a lot of trauma, so I tried to help others in the re­gion by connecting with them and making a safe space. Through that, I discovered a lot of different social issues. My first social issue workshop was in 2019, Green Lab. It was about climate change, and my group’s idea was to develop a wa­terproof tote bag. Our project was selected to go to a bootcamp to keep working on it, but then COVID hit. I ended up presenting it to the United Nations virtually and it was shortlisted into the final round. Why did you choose Salve Regina University?I would say there were multiple reasons. The scholarship they of­fered me definitely helped, but it’s also near two major cities, Boston and New York. If I go to New York, I can continue my work with the United Nations. If I go to Boston, I can see all my friends at Cam­bridge. So, I ended up coming to Newport. How did you adjust when you first arrived in Newport?I did have a culture shock. Da­mascus is a city that never sleeps. The streets are busy from 10 p.m. to 12 a.m. Coming here, everything died at 5 p.m. My first year was also very hard because I was faced with the idea of never seeing my family again. I faced some microaggres­sion for sure. When I got here, I got involved in many things. I helped develop the pre-law society and joined the leadership scholar program at Salve. It was great, but I also got overwhelmed. I had so many op­portunities and didn’t know what to choose, so it was a lot for me. I did burn out in my sophomore year when there was an earthquake in Syria. That year, I was juggling 21 credits, two clubs, a theater show and two jobs on campus. Even­tually, I learned that I could leave stuff be. What do you think about Newport now?I’m grateful to be here. It’s a calm city that allows me to regather after many years of war and op­pression. Being able to be in a safe place and discover the beauty of Newport is rewarding, especially in the winter months when every­thing is calmer. When it’s snowing, there’s a very clean snow coat over campus. I literally jump all over it. It’s very nice. How has your activism gone at Salve and in Newport?When it comes to the topic of the Middle East, I worked with the university to bring together our multifaith campus. Still, organizing protests is very hard at Salve. They have policies regarding chalking and require that you request a pro­test for a week in advance. One time, we had members of the community come and record us. They asked, “Shouldn’t you be in class?” A member of the Salve faculty had to speak with the person so they would leave. There were also people posting horrific things on [social media]. This was not the goal of our protest. We did not want to cause disruption on campus; we wanted to spread information. You have been very vocal on campus about the impact the Israel-Hamas war has had on the Middle East. Can you tell us more about that?Any sort of vio­lence is unacceptable. Human suffering is terrible in all its forms. It’s also important to know the historical context. This situation has been happening for years; it didn’t start on Oct. 7. To move forward in a way that is just and merciful, we need to be diplo­matic. Every war has an end, and I hope that it does sooner rather than later. The only pathway forward is peace and justice, but when and how it comes also matters. </div></body>

Mountain View, CA

NewsBreak

Conversation with Mohamad Kaziz: Salve Regina’s Activism Champion

The Salve Regina campus is enriched by the powerful voice of Mohamad “Omar” Kaziz, a student activist who brings his passion and leadership to not only the university but also the Newport community. Originally from Damascus, Syria, Kaziz is a senior global studies major with minors in political science and entrepreneurship. Throughout his academic career at Salve, he has organized countless protests, vigils and other events to make the student body aware of what he sees as pressing global and campus issues. As Kaziz embarks on his final year at Salve Regina, we sat down to reflect on all that he has accomplished.