As the time for commencement draws near, universities around the country are now the locations sites for protest encampments in support of Palestine and opposition to the war on Gaza.
Supported by students and citizens alike, the various demographics are united in their call to their universities to divest from all companies that they deem complicit to the war and do business with Israel.
While pro-Palestine protests have been occurring since last October, the escalation to encampments began recently, having originated at Columbia University on April 17.
According to Columbia University’s Daily Spectator, students set up tents as early as 4 a.m. on Wednesday, “[…] pledging to occupy the space until the University divests from companies with ties to Israel.”
By Thursday afternoon, the New York Police Department arrested 108 individuals in the encampment’s 34th hour.
This sparked a nationwide outrage from university students and many have begun their own encampments in solidarity.
While the number of universities participating grows daily, as of right now, local universities participating include; University of Southern California, California State University Pomona, University of California Los Angeles, University of California Irvine, University of California Berkeley and more, according to Al Jazeera.
The Los Angeles Times reports that police arrested 93 people on trespassing charges at USC’s encampment on April 24. Prior to the arrests, the university had also cancelled their mainstage commencement ceremony citing, “insufficient time to carry out ‘new safety measures,’” wrote the Daily Trojan.
This unpopular decision stems from the administration’s verdict to not allow their valedictorian, Asna Tabassum, to speak at the ceremony. In a community-wide email sent on April 15, the Provost Andrew Guzman attributed this cancellation to a desire to “protect students and keep our campus community safe,” according to the Daily Trojan.
Upon further research students discovered that the cancellation comes less than a week following accusations from pro-Israel groups against Tabassum. These groups accused her of “promoting antisemitic views” based on her liking pro-Palestine posts on Instagram and her Instagram biography that contained anti-Zionist rhetoric, according to the Daily Trojan.
Although the encampments might look different depending on the university campus, the list of demands the protestors have remains similar: disclose and divest.
DISCLOSE
According to an Instagram post from the Students for Justice in Palestine – California State University Sacramento chapter, protesters call for the CSU to “disclose all institutional expenditures, including direct and indirect investments, stocks, bonds, hedge funds and more.”
In other words, they call for transparency regarding the CSU’s financial transactions to be aware of how the system gets its money and where their investments lie.
DIVEST
The Sacramento SJP chapter additionally calls for the CSU to “divest from all companies and partnerships that actively participate in the occupation, colonization and ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people.”
The statement continues demanding the CSU also dissolve any financial, academic and institutional partnerships with programs in Israel. This would result in the termination of foreign exchange and study abroad programs. As of right now, the CSU does offer an international program at the University of Haifa in Israel.
While we have no knowledge of an encampment planned to happen at CSULB, a protest is scheduled for this Thursday, May 2. According to an Instagram post from the Students for Justice in Palestine – CSULB chapter, the protest will take place at 11 a.m. at the central quad.
“Join the widespread student movement urging campuses to divest from the military industrial complex and the genocidal Zionist regime, and instead, support the establishment of a people’s university,” the post reads.
An encampment however violates Regulation I of the campus rules and regulations. Regulation I, specifically Section A. Use of University Buildings, Facilities and Grounds prohibits camping or lodging on “University property, except in facilities or locations specifically authorized by the University.”
University Police Department Chief John Brockie said that as long as the protest remains peaceful and there is no violence or destruction of property, students are well within their rights to protest.
In preparation for the protest, CSULB President Jane Close Conoley sent out a campus-wide email saying “Much chaos is evident at campuses in California and across the nation. The desire to speak out against atrocities is noble.”
“Methods of communication, however, that interfere with the rights of others, damage public property, and cause physical harm are not consistent with our campus values or California law,” the email said.
Although CSULB is a public university, not all parts of campus are public forums where protests can take place, according to the email.
“Recall, that freedom of speech is not unlimited and must comply with our Time, Place, and Manner regulations,” the email reads.
In a comment provided to the Daily Forty-Niner, Conoley said “I understand and share the horror most people feel over the deaths in Gaza and those associated with October 7. I think that message has been received nationally and internationally, but we will listen to further campus perspectives.”
The CSU Chancellor’s Office and Board of Trustees also commented on the situation according to a statement CBS13 was able to obtain. The statements reads that the CSU supports student’s rights to assemble and peacefully protest as long as it complies with “all applicable federal, state, and local laws and CSU policy to ensure a safe and welcoming environment for all students, faculty, staff, and visitors on CSU campuses.”
This article was edited on April 30, 2024 to include a quote from CSULB President Jane Close Conoley.