Student protests against the war between Israel and Hamas have taken place at a growing number of universities after the arrest of more than 100 protesters at Columbia University last week.
Students are demanding that universities divest themselves from any companies working to advance Israeli military efforts in Gaza – and in some cases from Israel itself.
Protests at several universities were organized by coalitions of student groups. The groups operate largely independently, although students say they draw inspiration from their peers at other universities.
A look back at the protests that universities have witnessed in recent days:
Columbia University
Pro-Palestinian student protesters held a camp at New York's Ivy League university last week. Police first attempted to evacuate the camp on Thursday, when they arrested more than 100 protesters. But the move backfired, serving as an inspiration to other students across the country and motivating protesters in Colombia to band together.
University officials said Wednesday morning that they had extended the deadline for protesters to leave. They said protesters had pledged to remove large numbers of tents and agreed that only students would remain in the camp. They also said they would make the camp more welcoming by banning any discriminatory language or harassing messages. The upper Manhattan campus camp seemed quiet and a little smaller Wednesday morning.
U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson traveled to Columbia on Wednesday to meet with Jewish students about their concerns about anti-Semitism on college campuses. Johnson said Israel and Jewish students on campus will not be left alone. Protesters nearby said they couldn't hear him, and he responded: "Enjoy your freedom of speech." »
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California has canceled its main commencement ceremony due to protests over the war between Israel and Hamas. The university has already canceled the pro-Palestinian major's commencement speech, citing security concerns. The Los Angeles Police Department said more than 90 people were arrested Wednesday night during a protest at the university for trespassing. One person was arrested for assault with a deadly weapon.
Los Angeles Police Capt. Kelly Muniz told reporters that an altercation took place, but she did not have specific details about the alleged assault. No injuries were reported. The university posted on the X site on Wednesday that it had closed the campus and that police would arrest people who did not come out.
Earlier in the day, police removed several tents, then entered a swing with protesters before retreating. At one point, USC police arrested a man and put him in a car. A crowd of people surrounded the car and chanted “Let him go! » Finally, the police did it.
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas campus was calmer Thursday, a day after a protest in which police and state troopers wearing riot gear and riding horses arrested dozens and forced hundreds of students to leave the main school lawn.
On Thursday, university officials tore down campus barricades and authorized another protest involving students and some faculty in the main plaza, beneath the school's famous clock tower, on central campus. The group was also protesting the arrests on Wednesday.
Although the group engaged in loud chants and angry shouts at Israel and campus leaders, the protest was much less volatile. No violence erupted as a small group of campus police watched from the tower steps. The gathering lasted approximately two hours.
George Washington University
About fifty students from George Washington University set up camp on university grounds on Thursday.
The protest at the Washington, D.C.-based school steadily intensified throughout the morning, with demonstrators waving Palestinian flags, beating drums and chanting slogans. Later that day, a group of Georgetown University students and faculty staged their own protest strike and marched to the George Washington University campus to join protesters there.
Despite the strong police presence around the camp, no serious incidents occurred. According to reports on social media, a pro-Israel protester, waving an Israeli flag, attempted to enter the middle of the demonstration but was taken away by police.
Protesters are demanding that the university end all ties with Israel and lift the suspension of a large group of pro-Palestinian students.
Dina Bowen Matthew, dean of the law school, released a video message saying that the law school's final exams, which were scheduled to take place in a building adjacent to the protest camp, would be moved to another building due to noise .
The university released a statement saying peaceful protests are permitted, but people not associated with the university are not allowed to protest on campus. The statement also said that nighttime sit-ins are not permitted on university property and that protesters will be asked to “remove tents and disperse” by 7 p.m.
Harvard University
In an effort to preempt protests, Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, closed most of the gates to the iconic Harvard Square before classes started Monday and restricted access to those with ID cards. of school identity.
The school also posted signs warning against setting up tents or tables on campus without permission. Those efforts did not stop demonstrators from setting up a 14-tent camp Wednesday, following a demonstration protesting the suspension of the university's membership in the Palestine Solidarity Committee for Harvard Students.
California Polytechnic State University, Humboldt
Protesters at the university used furniture, tents, chains and ties to block entrances to the academic and administration building on Monday. The demonstrators chanted: “We are not afraid of you! » A video clip shows them before police in riot gear storm them at the entrance to the building. University officials closed the campus until the end of this week, saying instruction would remain remote. They said in a statement Tuesday that students occupied the second building and three students were arrested. Unidentified people, who were not students, were also inside one of the occupied buildings, officials said Wednesday. Humboldt is located approximately 300 miles (480 kilometers) north of San Francisco.
The university said Thursday that protesters continued to occupy two buildings on campus and that it was developing contingency plans, including potentially keeping the campus closed after Sunday.
Emerson College
Boston police announced Thursday that 108 people were arrested at a camp at Emerson College. Police said four officers suffered non-life-threatening injuries. Those arrested are expected to appear in Boston Municipal Court.
On Tuesday, about 80 Emerson College students and other supporters filled a packed courtyard at the downtown Boston campus. University officials warned students Wednesday that some protesters had violated city ordinances, including blocking the right-of-way and fire hydrants, and violating noise ordinances.
The school said the alley in which some protested The people setting up their tents were city-owned, and Boston police warned of imminent law enforcement action. The university said in a statement that campus police were providing escort services to students after officials received credible information that some protesters were engaging in "targeted harassment and intimidation of pro-Israel Jews." .
New York University
At New York University, a student camp grew to hundreds of protesters earlier this week. Police announced Wednesday that 133 protesters had been arrested. They said they were all released on summons to appear in court for disturbing the peace.
Emory University
Atlanta police and Georgia state troopers dismantled an encampment on the grounds of Emory University Thursday morning, where Associated Press journalists counted at least 17 people in custody.
University police ordered dozens of protesters who had set up tents on campus early Thursday morning to leave, according to Emory spokeswoman Laura Diamond. She said in an email to The Associated Press that the group had “trespassed without authorization” into the private school.
“These individuals are not members of our community,” Diamond said. “These are activists trying to disrupt our university while our students are finishing their classes and preparing for exams. »
A long line of officers surrounded the camp of about three dozen tents after 9:30 a.m. Thursday, as protesters chanted slogans supporting the Palestinians and opposing the construction of a public safety training center in Atlanta . The two movements are closely linked in Atlanta, where there have been years of "Stop the Cops City" activism that included a series of anarchist attacks on property and state troopers killing a protester who occupied the site.
Northwestern University
Northwestern University hastily amended its student code of conduct Thursday morning to ban tents on its suburban Chicago campus, where anti-war student activists have set up a camp similar to pro-Palestinian protests at universities across the country.
Groups such as Jewish Voice for Peace and Educators for Justice in Palestine said the camp on the University of Evanston campus was a "safe space for those who want to show support for the Palestinian people." The students want, among other things, that the university divest from Israel.
Dozens of people attended as university President Michael Schill released an email saying the university had issued a "temporary supplement" to its student code to ban, among other things, tents, and warned of disciplinary measures including suspension, expulsion and criminal prosecution.
“The purpose of this addition is to balance the right to peacefully protest with our goal of protecting our community, avoiding any disruption to education, and ensuring university operations continue unabated,” Schilling said.
No arrests had been made as of mid-afternoon Thursday.
Yale University
Protests continued Thursday at Yale, although the number of student participants has clearly declined since Monday, when 48 people, including 44 students, were arrested and charged with trespassing after camping out for several days at Beinecke Plaza.
The vast majority of detainees were charged with trespassing. Classes are scheduled to end Friday for the semester at the New Haven, Conn., school, with final exams scheduled for May 2-8.
Fashion Institute of Technology
A few dozen protesters set up tents and occupied a building Thursday at the Fashion Institute of Technology, part of the public State University of New York system. Protesters sat on the ground or walked around, many wearing masks and keffiyehs. Other demonstrators outside the building carried Palestinian banners and flags. They refused to speak to a journalist.