KnightNews.com traveled to Washington D.C. to bring students coverage of the 2011 AIPAC Policy Conference, in addition to the protests that took place outside the D.C. Convention Center during President Obama’s speech.
According to its website, AIPAC works with both Democratic and Republican political leaders to enact public policy that strengthens the vital U.S.-Israel relationship.
This year, several UCF students traveled to D.C. as well to attend the conference and represent the student body. Most notably, SGA President Matt McCann attended. Check out our exclusive interview with him on the first day of registration.
This year set an attendance record for the conference with more than 10,000 attendees, 1,500 of which were students.
President Obama spoke at the conference around 10:30 a.m. on its first day to address the relationship between the U.S. and Israel, as well as to discuss some heated points he made during his Mideast Policy Speech last Thursday.
According to a press release sent to KnightNews.com by UCF student organization ‘Students for Israel,’ the UCF Delegation presented Florida’s members of Congress with a petition advocating for a strong US-Israel relationship signed by leaders on the UCF Campus.
Signers of the petition included over a dozen SGA Senators and the leadership of the College Democrats and College Republicans. 215 SGA Presidents across the country, the Presidents of the College Democrats of America and College Republican National Committee, and over 2/3rds of Congress were also in attendance.
KnightNews.com will continue to follow along with the situation in the Middle East, especially Israel, as UCF has one of the highest Jewish populations of any school in the country, with an estimated 5,500.
Check out our photo gallery from the protests outside the convention center:
