Amani Kayed, a first-generation student at Manor College in Jenkintown and a Palestine native, was recently highlighted for her thoughts on the ongoing Israeli-Hamas conflict.

According to the college, she cringes when people ask if she has any family in Gaza (she does). 

“The way the question is posed, it makes it seem like everything there is OK if you don’t have family there,” Kayed said. “But that’s not how I view it. My blood is Palestinian. When people ask the question, I tell them, ‘Everyone in Palestine is family’ because they are.”

Kayed grew up in the Philadelphia area and has made several trips to her homeland over the course of her life, most recently this summer. She describes it as a place with “loving air” that is “rich in culture.”

“You just hear how the older generation talks about it and it’s so beautiful,” Kayed said. “Sitting outside there and looking at the view, there is nothing in the world like that to me. Palestine is the soul of my soul.” 

Kayed received a scholarship for Refugee, Immigrant and First-Generation college students. 

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Photos: Manor College