May 15th-19th: Recap of the most impactful events from Pro‑Palestinian protests in the US colleges

The protest escalated on Wednesday afternoon, leading to the police involvement after the protesters circled a lecture hall on the Southern California campus. The demonstrators urged the University to dispose itself of investments in companies that profit from the war in Gaza, make the University's assets available to the public, and end academic programs with Israel. During the protest, a group of demonstrators entered the mentioned lecture hall. UC Irvine spokesperson described the protest as "violent," whereas one of the protesters arrested by police testified the protest had been "peaceful." As a result of the police involvement, 47 people were arrested, some for trespassing, whereas others for the dispersal after being ordered by police. 19 individuals were not affiliated with the university, two were school employees, and 26 were students. One of the arrested faculty members said, "Unlike the people who are escorting me right now -- I think they're people – my students are not interested in violence. They're only interested in drawing attention to a genocide;" the second arrested faculty person, this time professor, argued "These young people are going to be the ones that are going to pay the price for these horrible decisions... These police officers out here today, that's thousands of student scholarships. Thousands of students could have been able to go to school and have books and have housing... But instead, our chancellor, who is a cruel man, decided to send thousands of dollars worth of state funding paid for by the taxpayers into the trash."

Protests at University of Michigan resolved around the demonstrators wearing masks and placing fake bloody corps outside the home of a University of Michigan board member - chair of the university's governing board, Sarah Hubbard. She disclosed the process of the protests, saying, "They approached my home and taped a letter to my front door and proceeded to erect the tents." In the letter, the protesters demanded stoping investing in the companies having ties to Israel. After the police arrival, the demonstrators left Hubbard's yard and took the tents. However, they left the fake corps behind. During the time no arrests were made. Similarly, the protestors intruded regent Jordan Acker. He recalled similair situation, by highlighting that early in the morning protester paid him visit and declared a list of the demands, "including defending the police." Univeristy of Michigan released a press statement, saying that over 30 students staged similiar protests, visiting Board of Regents members at their houses. The tents and fake bloody corpses were laying in front of their houses, whereas the lists of demands were displayed on the house doors.

The University of Chicago witnessed the outpour of the protest on May 17th and 18th. The protest group occupied the Institute of Politics building, claiming they wanted to picture the ties of the University to Israel in this way. Police intervened, and some of the demonstrators fled from the building, jumping from the second floor and being applauded by the rest of the protestors and bystanders. In a statement released on Saturday, the University spokesperson, Jeremy Manier, said, "The University of Chicago is fundamentally committed to upholding the rights of protesters to express a wide range of views...At the same time, University policies make it clear that protests cannot jeopardize public safety, disrupt the University’s operations, or involve the destruction of property." According to him, the protestors tried to block the building's entrance, damage the property, and ignore the orders to leave issued by the officials. No arrests or injuries were reported during the protest.

A group of at least 75 pro-Palestine protesters have set up an encampment at Drexel University. The possibility of the police's reaction, however, rocketed due to the university president's statement. John Fry disclosed that the encampment raised "understandable concerns" about the safety on the campus. Senior of the county Kended Lewis informed media "We wanna keep it peaceful at the same time. We don't want anyone to get hurt; we just want people to be heard." The buildings are currently on lockdown, and the upcoming teaching will be carried out remotely.

Source: FoxNews, New York Times, CNN, ABC, NBC, NBC Philadelphia, LA Times