Law enforcement has apprehended a minimum of 25 supporters of Palestine and dismantled a camp at the University of Virginia (UVA) as multiple campuses in the United States prepare for further unrest during graduation events.
There was tension at UVA’s grounds in Charlottesville, where demonstrations had been relatively peaceful until Saturday morning, when officers in riot gear were featured in a video clearing a camp on the campus lawn, arresting some protesters with restraints and utilizing what seemed to be chemical spray.
Students at various US universities have gathered or erected tents at numerous establishments to protest the lengthy conflict in Gaza and urge President Joe Biden, who has backed Israel, to enhance efforts to halt the violence in Gaza.
They are also calling for their universities to disengage from corporations that back the Israeli government, including the suppliers of arms.
UVA stated in a release that protesters had violated multiple university rules by setting up tents on Friday night and using amplified sound.
UVA President Jim Ryan mentioned that authorities had discovered that “individuals unaffiliated with the university” who posed “some safety concerns” had joined the protesters on the campus.
The number of those detained who were UVA students was not immediately clear.
In an Instagram post, a group named UVA Encampment for Gaza, which declared earlier this week that it had organized the encampment, condemned the university’s decision to involve the police.
Meanwhile, numerous individuals were arrested for “criminal trespass” outside the Art Institute of Chicago during a protest on Saturday subsequent to the institute requesting police to expel protesters that it claimed were unlawfully occupying its premises, as stated by the Chicago Police Department on X.
Elsewhere, altercations didn’t escalate to arrests. In Ann Arbor, advocates for Palestine briefly disrupted a graduation ceremony at the University of Michigan, one of the many institutions that adjusted their safety procedures for commencement events.
Videos circulated on social media depicted numerous students adorned in the traditional keffiyeh headdress and graduation caps, waving Palestinian flags as they paraded down the middle aisle of Michigan Stadium amidst cheers and jeers from a large audience.
The ceremony proceeded, and campus security guided the protesters to the back of the stadium, yet no detentions were made, as stated by Colleen Mastony, a university spokeswoman.
“Peaceful protests like this have occurred at U-M [University of Michigan] graduation ceremonies for years,” said Mastony in a statement. “The university endorses freedom of speech and expression, and university leaders are delighted that today’s commencement was such a proud and auspicious occasion.”
One of the rallying cries heard by demonstrators at the University of Michigan was, “Divulge, divest. We will not cease, we will not desist,” as reported by Al Jazeera’s John Hendren from Ann Arbor.
“Per feedback from faculty and students we’ve conversed with, no satisfactory response has been received regarding engaging students on their requests. The university has not consented to reveal its investments in Israel,” he remarked.
Differing opinions on Israel’s conflict in Gaza have sparked, at times violently, across US campuses over recent weeks. Many institutions, including Columbia University in New York City, have summoned police to disperse the protests.
Thus far, law enforcement has detained over 2,000 demonstrators at colleges nationwide.
Protests against the war in the US are a response to Israel’s assault in Gaza, where more than 34,000 Palestinians have perished at the hands of Israeli forces since October, and the Palestinian territory has been decimated in what experts on rights have branded as a genocide.
The hostilities commenced following an unprecedented attack by the Palestinian organization Hamas on October 7 within Israel, resulting in the death of almost 1,200 individuals, according to Israeli authorities.
Indignation over Ole Miss occurrence
Campus protests have emerged as a fresh political focal point amid a fiercely contested and deeply polarized US election year.
During a pro-Palestinian demonstration at the University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, on Thursday, a larger group of counter-protesters chanting the national anthem and brandishing US flags encountered the demonstrators.
The incidents at Ole Miss, the principal university in the state, triggered extensive outrage and censure after a video that went viral depicted a predominantly white group of students taunting a Black female protester.
Some individuals uttered racially charged remarks, and one person was heard making noises akin to those of a monkey at the Black student.
While the university’s chancellor deplored the “racist undertones” of the incident and mentioned an ongoing inquiry, Republican Representative Mike Collins from Georgia shared the video on his X account on Friday, stating: “Ole Miss handling the situation.”
A representative for Collins stated that he cited examples of “ordinary students… resisting the very minute faction of leftist instigators whose sole purpose is to disrupt and dismantle.”
However, the taunting received harsh criticism both on and off campus.
“Students demanded an end to genocide. They were met with racism,” remarked James M Thomas, a sociology professor at the University of Mississippi, on X.
Source: www.aljazeera.com