Student organizations protesting The State News began a formal campaign against the newspaper Monday by passing out fliers detailing how to receive a refund for the $5 State News tax included with tuition.

The groups, which included Students for Peace and Justice, Students for Economic Justice and Students for Palestinian Human Rights, protested the newspaper's decision to publish ads they say showed Palestinians in a bad light.

The ads ran in spring 2003.

The groups will continue to distribute fliers throughout campus for 10 days until the last day students can receive refunds.

About a dozen students gathered in front of Student Services at 3 p.m. on Monday and stayed for approximately an hour, handing out fliers to passers-by illustrating the steps involved to get a tax refund.

At least a couple hundred students are involved from various campus organizations, women's studies senior Rachel Parsons said.

"We brought our grievances to The State News last spring and they kept running us around without any solutions," she said.

"This was a last-resort effort to show them we're serious."

The groups made two different fliers to hand out.

One described their cause and why they were campaigning against The State News, and the other simply informed people how they can get an easy $5.

More than 30 tax refund requests were submitted by late Monday, according to a secretary at The State News.

The State News editor in chief Kevin Hardy said he's glad people are exercising their right to a democracy.

"The fact they protested and spoke out is why we're in this situation. It's their free speech and that's why we ran the ads, free speech," he said. "There isn't enough activism on campus and we should appreciate that some people can express their beliefs.

"I disagree with their beliefs just as I disagree with the campustruth.org ads themselves, but I don't know what could have been done differently."

Rehab Abdel-Kariem, a human biology senior with Students for Palestinian Human Rights, said The State News deceived protesters by suspending publication of the ads then putting them back in the paper during the last days of the spring semester.

"We tried to work within the system to educate the staff about the hatred these ads are depicting, but it didn't work," she said.

"Our demands were ignored and we have to have our voices heard.

"This is not an issue of freedom of speech because there is a clause in The State News stating they will not publish any ads that discriminate against race, religion or people."

Many of the students stopping by 345 Student Services on Monday to get their tax refunds did it on principle to show their anger toward The State News' ad policy.

But some, such as international studies senior Evan Allen, just wanted some extra cash.

"I was already at Student Services heading for the employment office and they gave me a flier and I figured why not get $5," the international studies senior said.

"I don't even know what this is all about or the reason behind it."