Police say they will not interfere in peaceful protests at George Washington University
It’s noisy at the moment. Several organisers have been speaking at a news conference, making clear their intent not to vacate this area. At the moment, there are a little more than 100 students encamped in what is called University Square.
Unlike what is happening at other universities like Princeton, this is a public university, so effectively, this is all public space. University administrators and the police are well aware of this. Administrators did ask the police to come in 24 hours ago and remove tents. However, Washington, DC police declined to do so. They insisted that the demonstrations were peaceful and that they would not interfere as long as they remained so.
Now, some of the students have told us that the university is using retaliatory methods. It has suspended a number of the students who have been demonstrating. The university identifies them when they leave the square behind me and go into one of the adjoining buildings to use a bathroom, for example, and as they would need to log in to the system. They have then been identified by that login.
However, the students insist they will remain here. The police maintain that their job is to stand here and observe and take no action while these demonstrations remain peaceful.
A statue of George Washington is adorned with a Palestinian flag, a keffiyeh and stickers as it stands in the University Yard at George Washington University, April 27th
Princeton protestors won’t leave until the university divests from Israel
This is day three at Princeton University, and these students are walking a fine line. The university has said that they are not allowed to sleep here, so they have been coming in shifts to continually occupy this space for these past three days. On Thursday, the first day, when a couple of them put up a tent, police came in and arrested them. So that’s the line they have to walk.
I talked to a history professor and he was saying there was a bit of irony here that this university is instilling values in the students and then punishing them for practising those values.These students have decided to take their stand on this issue: They’re demanding divestment from the university from anything invested in Israel or in the war on Gaza, and they say they’ll stay here until they get what they asked for.
Police staying away from Emory University after Thursday’s violent scenes
Over the last hour or so, the number [of protesters has] steadily been growing. At the moment, it’s probably more of a gathering than a protest.
But this is very much a peaceful affair, and that’s been very much what the organisers have been selling it as on social media. [They say] come along, bring a blanket, bring some food, bring something to drink, sit on the ground, make some posters, write some slogans on the floor with chalk, just show your solidarity through peaceful motives.
There’s also a significant lack of police here. The occasional officer walks by, but compared to Thursday, when we saw those scenes and those mass arrests, the police are very much staying away.
The president of this university is coming under increasing pressure because he is the man who said that the police were right to be here on Thursday when we saw those violent arrests. Yesterday, one of the faculties here held a motion to hold a vote of no confidence in him.
Prominent US activist expresses support for campus pro-Palestine protests
Linda Sarsour tells Al Jazeera that she is “extremely inspired and encouraged by these young people all across this country”.
Sarsour, who is of Palestinian descent, was visiting the protest at Princeton University where students, as they are on campuses across the country, are protesting in support of Palestinians, as well as against their institutions’ investments in Israel.
“These young people are reaffirming and demonstrating that the tide is shifting on Palestine, that the Palestinian people have solidarity not just across the United States of America, but across the world,” she said.
When asked why no major university presidents are supporting the students in their protests, she said that the institutions “are beholden to their donors, instead of being loyal to their students”.
Day 10 of pro-Palestine protest at Columbia University
Students continue to occupy an encampment at Columbia University’s campus in New York. They have been protesting the university’s investments in Israel and showing their support for Palestine for almost two weeks – inspiring other students across the nation to do the same.
Columbia University’s campus in New York, US, April 26
Hassidic Jews in support of the pro-Palestine encampment chant outside Columbia University’s campus in New York
Muslims in support of the pro-Palestine encampment students listen to the service outside Columbia University’s campus
Dozens of student protesters arrested in Arizona, Indiana, Massachusetts
There’s been a fresh wave of arrests on US campuses today as students continue to protest against Israel’s war on Gaza.
In Massachusetts on the east coast, the state police said they helped cleared out a encampment at Northeastern University in the city of Boston and that 102 protesters who refused to leave were arrested and will be charged with trespassing.
The university said in a statement on social media that it decided to call in police as “what began as a student demonstration two days ago was infiltrated by professional organizers with no affiliation to Northeastern”.
In Arizona in the south, campus police at the Arizona State University (ASU) said they arrested 69 protesters. The university said “a group of people – most of whom were not ASU students, faculty or staff – created an encampment and demonstration” and were arrested and charged with criminal trespass after refusing to disperse.
And in midwestern Indiana, the Indiana University police department said 23 protesters were arrested there.
Indiana State Police along with Indiana University police told demonstrators they could not pitch tents and camp on campus, according to the Reuters news agency. When the tents were not removed, police arrested and transported protesters to the Monroe County Justice Center on charges of criminal trespass and resisting arrest.
Students continue protest at City University of New York
After more than a week of protests at the City University of New York, there’s a sense of normalcy here.
Several tents remain on the campus quad, those are where people live and sleep by the day. You’ve also got speakers, one after the other, coming out to encourage people, reminding them why they are here. The entire time, they are also trying to make sure that the police don’t come in and sweep these all away.
And the rules are different at each encampment.
We went to Princeton University earlier today, and they try to play by the rules there. They did not put up tents. They put on masks because they were worried of being identified. They don’t want to be kicked out. And they didn’t use microphones because that’s against university rules.
But here and in most other camps, they simply don’t play by those university rules. And that’s kind of the point of an occupation.
About 100 students have been arrested across the US in the last 24 hours. There have been more than 650 arrested over the past week or so.
