Pro-Palestinian protesters demanding separation from Israel and the destruction of the state military action in gazahas set up several new tent camps at colleges and universities across California this week.
Tensions have risen and arrests have been made as protesters continue to occupy the campuses of UC Irvine, UC Riverside, Occidental College, Sacramento State, San Francisco State, Cal Poly Humboldt and others.
at least 25 people He was arrested early Tuesday at Cal Poly Humboldt. Protesters at USC have also been arrested, and protesters at UCLA are facing disciplinary action from the college.
Here’s what’s happening across the state:
Pro-Palestine protesters demonstrated next to their encampment in the central part of the UC Irvine campus.
(Gina Frazee/Los Angeles Times)
UC Irvine
Protesters at UC Irvine on Tuesday were confronted by campus police, who were handing out citations.
The situation has heightened tensions on the Orange County campus and mirrors protests escalating at universities across the country.
A group crowded around campus police as they wrote a woman, who was unaffiliated with the school, a ticket for her role in the demonstration. The woman, who was not identified, was told she needed to leave the premises immediately.
More than two dozen protesters formed a line in front of the encampment and chanted, “UCPD, KKK, IOF you are all the same,” and, “Shame, shame, shame on you, you have blood on your hands too ”
Campus police set up additional barricades around 3 a.m. Tuesday to surround the encampment, which were increased on Monday, but did not order anyone to disperse.
The protesters responded by expanding their occupation to the barricades. Over the past day, the encampment, located between John V. Crowell Hall and Rowland Hall, has grown from about a dozen tents to more than 20.
UC Irvine Chancellor Howard Gilman said in a statement late Monday that administrators have reached out to students at the “existing illegal encampment” and asked them to relocate. Gilman said the space they occupied is in an area where classes are taught and research is conducted.
He said, “We hope that our students and other allies will not insist on living in a place that violates the law, violates our policies and disrupts our mission.”
But Sarah Khalil, 21, a fourth-year student, said the protesters had no plans to remove their tents or dismantle them.
The group posted a banner listing its demands: end funding of “violent extremism”, promise amnesty for student protesters, commit to an academic boycott of Israel and end what the group calls “Zionist programming”. Remove.
“We are here for something bigger than ourselves. Khalil said, we are here because of the genocide and we do not want our money to be spent on that genocide.
UCLA
Protestors at UCLA A clash broke out at a large but mostly peaceful gathering Over the weekend, not far from the site where pro-Palestinian students have camped with tents for several days.
Physical altercations between protesters on Monday prompted the university to increase its law enforcement presence, officials said.
Pro-Palestinian protesters held a student-faculty rally in Dixon Plaza on the UCLA campus on Monday.
(Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
UCLA spokeswoman Mary Osako said in a statement that administrators are taking disciplinary action against several protesters after reports they blocked a student’s access to a classroom.
“This kind of disruption to our teaching and learning mission is disgusting, plain and simple,” he said. “While the demonstrations have been largely peaceful, our campus must remain a place where we treat each other with respect and recognize our shared humanity – not a place where we engage in violence and bullying.”
UC Riverside
While UC Riverside students are also protesting the Israel–Hamas war, a spokesperson said, “All operations on campus are operating as normal.”
UC Riverside Chancellor Kim Wilcox said in a letter to the campus community on Monday that “the crisis has impacted many on our campus in personal and profound ways.”
But, he said, “speech and activity that disrupts campus operations is not protected.” Large signs and banners will be removed and blocking access to campus sites will not be tolerated, he said in a statement.
Pitzer College
In Pitzer, where students have been living in a camp of about 25 tents for five days, tensions between protesters and authorities remain low.
Although campus security vehicles are sometimes parked near the encampment, no college or local law enforcement officials have intervened.
“The atmosphere is really joyful,” said senior and protest co-organizer Sophie McClain. “We’ve been really lucky that we haven’t had any repression from the college.”
A pro-Palestinian Jewish activist paints a part of a pro-Palestinian mural on the side of Mead Hall on the Pitzer College campus in Claremont.
(Gennaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
McClain said many students spend time at the camp during the day, socializing, working on final assignments and playing music. 20 to 30 students sleep in their tents at night. The encampment is growing, he said, with new tents being added every night.
Community meals, study sessions and other events take place throughout the day.
“Pitzer respects the rights of students to protest and express themselves peacefully,” Vice President and Dean of Students Jan Barker Alexander wrote in a statement to Campus. “Our expectation is that safety will continue to be everyone’s primary concern.”
Occidental College
Around 60 students camped at Occidental College around 4 am on Monday.
Co-organizer Matthew Vickers, a junior studying diplomacy and world affairs, said protesters worked in the early morning darkness to avoid potential issues with campus security.
“We wanted to be as secretive as possible so as not to cause any disruption,” said Vickers, a member of the Occidental chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine.
Dozens of tents took over the quad in the center of campus. Students relaxed on the grass, chatted with friends and worked on laptops in tents. Vickers said campus security officers stopped by Monday morning but were respectful and did not intervene.
In an email to faculty and staff Monday afternoon, Occidental President Harry J. Elam Jr. said the camp “has thus far engaged in peaceful demonstrations” and that the college “will remain steadfast in its commitment to ensure that any dialogue or demonstrations will continue to be safe and peaceful.”
usc
at USC, where Los Angeles Police arrested 93 people While they cleared an encroachment in the center of the complex last week on suspicion of encroachment, the reestablished camp site was mostly quiet this week.
Each day begins with a daily briefing and includes teach-ins, poetry readings hosted by professors, yoga, and crafts. Volunteers have provided enough food for the campers to eat three meals a day.
USC students protesting the war in Gaza spend time in a tent camp in Founders Park.
(Gennaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
The participants declined to be named, citing security concerns.
“I think the narrative is that we’re a safety issue or that we’re scaring other people, when really it’s a place of care and love,” said a USC Divest participant from the Death Coalition. “We’re all here because at the end of the day, we believe in humanity.”
cal poly humboldt
After a tense overnight standoff with Gaza war protesters at Cal Poly Humboldt, police moved in Tuesday morning and arrested at least 25 people, including students and professors.
As part of the operation, officials said they cleared Siemens Hall and Nelson Hall East, which had been occupied for a week. The campus is still closed and it is unclear when it will reopen.
“It is a difficult day. It breaks my heart to see this, and no one really wanted to see things get to this point. We have all watched this with great concern, and always with the sincere hope that it will be resolved peacefully,” Cal Poly Humboldt President Tom Jackson Jr. said in a statement. “Unfortunately, serious criminal activity that crossed the line far beyond the level of protest placed the campus at continued risk.”
