[News] Hundreds of university students arrested in US as Gaza war protests spread

[Anti-Imperialist News]

  Hundreds of university students arrested in US as Gaza war protests spread

/Police out in full force, some using chemical irritants and Tasers to 
disperse the students, as more universities join the movement./

US college protest Gaza war
A poster is seen as people protest in support of Palestinians in Gaza at 
the University of Southern California (USC) [Aude Guerrucci/Reuters]
Published On 28 Apr 
2024-https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/4/28/hundreds-of-university-students-arrested-in-us-as-gaza-war-protests-spread
<https://aje.io/jlto60>

Hundreds of students have been arrested across universities in the 
United States as protesters continue to demand a ceasefire 
<https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/2024/4/27/from-la-to-new-york-student-protests-in-support-of-palestine-grow-strong> 
in Gaza and divestment from companies enabling Israel’s nearly 
seven-month war on the Palestinian enclave.

Police were out in full force on college campuses on Saturday, some 
using chemical irritants and Tasers to disperse the students, as more 
universities 
<https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/4/27/pro-palestinian-student-protests-spread-in-second-week-of-demonstrations> 
witnessed protests against the continued bombing of the Gaza Strip and 
seeking an end to US military assistance for Israel.

In Boston, police detained about 100 people while clearing a protest 
camp at Northeastern University, with social media posts showing 
security forces in riot gear and officers loading tents onto the back of 
a truck.

Police clear an encampment on the Northeastern University campus in 
Boston, early Saturday, April 27, 2024.Police clear an encampment on the 
Northeastern University campus in Boston [Michael Casey/AP Photo]

In a statement on X, Northeastern said the area on campus where the 
protests were held was now “fully secured” and “all campus operations 
have returned to normal”.

The school said its move came after “what began as a student 
demonstration two days ago was infiltrated by professional organisers 
with no affiliation to Northeastern”. It added that detained individuals 
who produced a valid school ID were released and will face disciplinary 
proceedings, not legal action.

In Bloomington in the Midwest, the Indiana University Police Department 
arrested 23 people as they cleared a campus protest camp, the Indiana 
Daily Student newspaper reported.

On the opposite side of the country, the Arizona State University Police 
Department arrested 69 people for trespassing after the group set up an 
“unauthorised encampment” on campus.

Arizona state officials said a protest group, “most of whom were not ASU 
students, faculty or staff”, set up a camp on Friday and ignored 
repeated orders to disperse.

Students gather for a Pro-Palestinian protest, amid the ongoing conflict 
between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, at the Arizona 
State UniversityStudents gather for a Pro-Palestinian protest at the 
Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona [Liliana Salgado/Reuters]

Meanwhile, at Washington University in St Louis, at least 80 people were 
arrested, including US presidential candidate Jill Stein and her 
campaign manager.

Across the US, university leaders have tried, and largely failed, 
to quell the demonstrations, which often saw the police intervening 
violently, with videos emerging from different states showing hundreds 
of students – and even faculty members – being forcefully arrested.

The protesters have demanded amnesty for students and faculty members 
disciplined or fired for protesting. About a week ago at Columbia 
University 
<https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/4/27/columbia-universitys-shafik-rebuked-over-gaza-crackdown-but-avoids-censure> 
in New York, more than 100 pro-Palestinian activists were arrested.

What started at the Columbia campus has turned into a nationwide 
showdown between students and administrators over pro-Palestine protests 
and the restrictions on free speech.

In the past 10 days, hundreds of students have been arrested, suspended, 
put on probation and, in rare cases, expelled from colleges, including 
Yale University, the University of Southern California, Vanderbilt 
University and the University of Minnesota.

A few universities had to cancel graduation ceremonies, while others 
have seen their buildings occupied by the protesters.


    Students taking ‘big risks’

Al Jazeera’s John Hendren, reporting from Princeton University in New 
Jersey, said “the price of protests can be high” for the students 
occupying college campuses.

“Students are taking some big risks at these protests. If they violate 
university rules, they can be expelled. And here at Princeton, tuition 
is over $50,000 a year,” he said. “For many of them, it’s an education 
they have been looking forward to all their lives.”

Princeton student Sam Bisno told Al Jazeera taking such risks showed how 
“passionate” students were about the issue. “People are willing to put 
it all on the line. But we know we have the power in numbers,” he said.

US college protestPeople stand near a flower arrangement that reads 
‘Free Palestine’ during a protest at the University of Southern 
California [David Swanson/Reuters]

Momodou Taal was among four students whom Cornell University in New York 
state “temporarily suspended” on Saturday for setting up an encampment 
on its campus.

He told Al Jazeera the protesting students received threats and were 
subjected to doxing, which refers to the posting of the personal 
information of an individual on the internet without their consent. He 
said such students received no protection from their school.

“We no longer have faith in the administration to be a place safe for 
Muslim students, for Arab students, for Palestinian students and by and 
large those students of colour and pro-Palestinian students,” Taal said.

Maysam Elghazali, an organiser of the protests at Emory University in 
Atlanta, said the demonstrating students had three demands.

“Number one, that Emory disclose all of its financial investments. 
Number two, that they divest from all Israeli companies, and number 
three, that they provide continued amnesty and protection to all the 
students who were unjustly arrested,” she told Al Jazeera.

Meanwhile, college protests against the “genocide” of the Palestinians 
in Gaza have also spread to schools in Canada, Europe and Australia.

Canada’s first campus protest camp for Gaza came up at McGill University 
in Montreal on Saturday.

Broadcaster CBC reported protesters were demanding McGill and Concordia 
universities “divest from funds implicated in the Zionist state as well 
as [cut] ties with Zionist academic institutions”.
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