Greta Thunberg Detained at Eurovision Protest

Shannon Vavra
Sat, May 11, 2024 

TT News Agency/Johan Nilsson via Reuters


Climate activist Greta Thunberg was detained by Swedish police in Malmö on Saturday for attending a pro-Palestinian protest outside the Eurovision venue.

Thunberg, who was wearing a keffiyeh, was escorted away from the event by the cops, according to footage from the incident. Police said in a statement that they had “handled a number of unauthorized public gatherings” and taken several people into custody, but it was not immediately clear if Thunberg was among them or faced any charges.

“I’m here to show we think it is outrageous and inexcusable for Eurovision to let Israel participate while committing a genocide,” Thunberg said in a statement.


The demonstration was organized to protest the participation of Israel in the Eurovision contest while Israel is waging war in Gaza. Israeli singer Eden Golan, 20, qualified to participate in the 68th edition of the song contest earlier this week.

Golan had been met with a chorus of cheers and boos in dress rehearsals and the semi-final on Thursday, the BBC reported.

“It is truly such an honor to be here on stage, representing [Israel] with pride,” Golan said.

Israel’s onslaught against Gaza, part of an effort to root out Hamas terrorists following the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, has killed over 30,000 Palestinians, most of whom are women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The protest coincides with Israel planning a ground offensive in Gaza that the United Nations has warned will be a slaughter. U.S. President Joe Biden and his aides have been urging Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in phone calls and meetings to consider other courses of action given that Israel’s current plan to blast through Rafah will inevitably harm civilians.


Demonstrators hold signs and Palestinian flags, as people protest against Israeli participation in the Eurovision Song Contest.
(REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger)

Israeli authorities earlier Saturday ordered Palestinians to evacuate from more regions of Rafah, the southern city where Israel had forced civilians to go for safety earlier in the war.

Student movements around the globe have kicked off a series of protests against Israel’s war in Gaza, from Columbia University in New York to Cambridge in the U.K. and hundreds of other schools. Police have cracked down on protests, leading to thousands of arrests.


Protesters march during the Stop Israel demonstration against Israel's participation in the 68th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC).
(TT News Agency/Johan Nilsson via REUTERS)

“STOP USING Eurovision TO WHITEWASH THE ISRAELI CRIMES,” one sign protesters carried at the Malmö protest read.

Another read “WELCOME TO GENOCIDE SONG CONTEST,” alongside an image of a heart dripping red ink like blood.

Tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators were expected to partake in the protest, waving Palestinian flags, the police stated earlier.

Switzerland Wins Eurovision Song Contest 2024 Finals as Thousands March Against Israel in Malmö

Stephanie Kaloi

Sat, May 11, 2024

Thousands took to the streets in Malmö, Sweden to protest the Israel-Hamas war and the decision to allow Israel’s contestant Eden Golan to compete in the Eurovision Song Contest and its Saturday final. Some estimates said there were more than 15,000 protesters, though police pegged the demonstration at between 6,000 and 8,000 demonstrators. Israel and Golan ended up finishing in fifth place, with Switzerland ultimately taking home the victory, though Israel took a brief lead with a strong showing in the fan vote as the votes were announced.

In video shared on social media, protesters chanted “We will crush Zionism” and “There’s only one solution — Intifada revolution.”

Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg (C) wearing the keffiyeh scarf is removed by police during a pro-Palestinian demonstration outside the Malmo Arena venue ahead of the final of the 68th Eurovision Song Contest (Getty Images)

Protestors in Malmö include Greta Thunberg, who previously joined thousands of people in the city’s streets on Friday. Photos and video of Thunberg being arrested by police was shared on social media by news account Visegrád 24.

The account captioned a photo of Thunberg being pulled away by two officers, “Greta Thunberg being dragged away by the Swedish police to one of their police cars. Greta is a repeat offender and had been detained and sentenced multiple times over the pasts year and a half.”

On Friday, Thunberg tweeted, “Malmö says NO to genocide! People from all over Sweden are gathering in Malmö this week, where Eurovision is taking place, to protest against Israel’s participation in the competition and to demand a #FreePalestine and #CeasefireNow!”

“Yesterday we were tens of thousands people flooding the streets of Malmö. We will not accept that a country currently committing genocide is allowed a platform to artwash themselves. The world cannot remain silent in a genocide. Everyone who can must use their voice and speak up against Israel’s crimes and occupation,” she continued.

You can watch the music video for the Eurovision winning song from Switzerland’s Nemo, “The Code,” below:

Golan is not without supporters. Ahead of her performance on Saturday night, Israeli actress Gal Gadot video chatted with the young singer. In a video shared by author Hen Mazzig, Gadot told Golan, “Just give love, love, love and get on stage just like yesterday, strong, and you don’t lose yourself. You’re amazing! That’s our victory. You’ve already won.”

“You know, I faced so many haters and my movies being boycotted in some countries who didn’t want the movies because of me. It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter at all,” the “Wonder Woman” actress continued. “The haters are the ones losing. We have the entire world to win over.”

Despite protests that saw more than 10,000 people turn out against Israel ahead of Golan’s performance Thursday, Israel advanced to the finals and is currently one of the favorites to win the event, with bookers ranking her second behind Croatia’s Baby Lasagna. Golan was met with boos before, during, and after her performance in the semi-finals and again Friday night during rehearsals.

The finale round will begin at 9 p.m. Central European Summer Time (3 p.m. EDT).

Though organizers of the 68th Eurovision contest have attempted to keep politics out of the event as per usual, tensions have been simmering since Eden Golan’s song “October Rain” was approved for the competition. This year’s Eurovision has taken place as the Israeli-Hamas war has continued to bring devastation to Gaza.

Israel’s security agency Shin Bet ordered Golan to remain in her hotel room on Saturday ahead of the final after thousands of people staged a protest outside.

Golan has also been met with disdain from her fellow contestants. On Friday, Greek contestant Marina Satti pretended to fall asleep as Golan answered questions from reporter about her song. TV journalist Miha Schwartzenberg shared a video online and tweeted, “This is Greece representative singer at @Eurovision , @marina_satti .An embarrassment for Greece and for every decent #Greek person.”

“Pretending to fall asleep while the Israel’s contestant is speaking is not just bad education or pure jew-hatred,but also a stain over the greek nation she represents in front of the world,” Schwartzenberg added.

Irish contestant Bambie Ray Robinson, known by their stage name Bambie Thug also complained about commentary from Israel’s Kan, the country’s public broadcasting corporation, only hours before Saturday’s final.

They wrote in an Instagram Story, “There was a situation while we were waiting to go to stage for the flag parade rehearsal which I felt needed urgent attention from the EBU—the EBU have taken this matter seriously and we have discussed about what action needs to be taken.”

On Tuesday, Kan had warned its viewers that Bambie Thug’s performance of their song “Doomsday Blue” would be “the most scary” of the night. “There will be a lot of spells and black magic and dark clothing, Satanic symbols, and voodoo dolls, like we are at Cats Square in Jerusalem in the mid-90s,” the commentator said in reference to a public square in Jerusalem that was home to goth culture in the 1990s.

The commentator added that Bambie Thug liked to “speak negatively about Israel.”

On Saturday, Bambie Thug told RTÉ News, “I’m angry with other teams breaching their rules of the EBU, and still being allowed in. So there’s definitely a war drum sounding in my heart to push the performance even more than I have done before.

• Eurovision acts call for ‘love and peace’ as they finish performing

  
  Charlotte McLaughlin, PA Senior Entertainment Reporter in Malmo, Sweden
  Sat, May 11, 2024 at 3:52 p.m. MDT·6 min read
  
  Competitors at the Eurovision Song Contest have called for “love” and “peace” on stage as they finished performing ahead of the final vote.
  
  Protesters, who are calling for a boycott of the competition due to the participation of Israel’s Eden Golan, were on both sides of entrants queuing to go into the Malmo Arena in Sweden on Saturday.
  
  Several protesters have also been detained and taken away by police including Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg.
  
  They called out “free Palestine” and “shame” to those attending ahead of Golan and Ireland’s Bambie Thug and the UK’s Olly Alexander performing alongside 22 other countries.
  
  Golan received boos and cheers from the crowd during the grand final.
  
  Taking to the stage were Sweden’s contestants Marcus & Martinus, who opened the contest with Unforgettable, before Ukraine’s Alyona Alyona and Jerry Heil sang their religious themed Teresa & Maria prior to Germany’s Isaak delivering an emotional performance of Always On The Run.
  
  Several contestants appeared to reference conflicts throughout the world, with Lithuania’s Silvester Belt telling the audience to “spread love to the world”, while Bambie declared “love will always triumph hate”.
  
  At the end of Portugal’s Iolanda singing Grito, she told the crowd: “Peace will prevail.”
  
  Slimane, who performed his song Mon Amour, issued another message saying that people should be “united by music for love and peace”.
  
  To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Abba winning in Brighton, digital “Abba-tars” from London’s Abba Voyage appeared, but not the real life group members Agnetha Faltskog, Bjorn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad.
  
  Three former Eurovision winners — Swedish singers Charlotte Perrelli and Carola and Austrian drag performer Conchita Wurst — came onstage to perform Abba winning song Waterloo as votes were being cast and counted.
  
  Last year’s Swedish act Loreen, who triumphed with Tattoo in 2023 becoming the first female double winner in the contest’s history, came on stage to do a blend of her winning song and new track Forever.
  
  The Netherlands’ entry Joost Klein, was disqualified following a “threatening movement” from the singer towards a camerawoman, a Dutch radio and television broadcaster said.
  
  A statement on X from the Netherlands’ Songfestival, which sends acts to the Eurovision Song Contest, added that Avrotros, the Dutch radio and television broadcaster, found Klein’s “penalty very heavy and disproportionate”, adding that it was “very disappointed”.
  
  On X, formerly Twitter, the statement said: “An incident occurred after last Thursday’s performance.
  
  “Against clearly made agreements, Joost was filmed when he had just gotten off stage and had to rush to the green room.
  
  
  
  “At that moment, Joost repeatedly indicated that he did not want to be filmed. This wasn’t respected.
  
  “This led to a threatening movement from Joost towards the camera. Joost did not touch the camerawoman.
  
  “This incident was reported, followed by an investigation by the EBU (European Broadcasting Union) and police”.
  
  The statement said they had “consulted extensively with the EBU and proposed several solutions”, but that “nevertheless, the EBU has still decided to disqualify Joost Klein”.
  
  It added that Avrotros “finds the penalty very heavy and disproportionate”, saying they “stand for good manners, let there be no misunderstanding about that, but in our view, an exclusion order is not proportional to this incident”.
  
  The statement ended saying: “We are very disappointed and upset for the millions of fans who were so excited for tonight.
  
  “What Joost brought to the Netherlands and Europe shouldn’t have ended this way.”
  
  
  Joost Klein at a press conference (Jessica Gow/AP)
  
  Singer and rapper Klein, 26, entered with the song Europapa, which is a tribute to his late parents.
  
  He was disqualified from Saturday night’s grand final following a Swedish police investigation into allegations of inappropriate behaviour.
  
  The EBU said police were investigating a complaint made by a female member of the production crew after an incident following his performance in Thursday night’s semi-final.
  
  “While the legal process takes its course, it would not be appropriate for him to continue in the contest,” it said in a statement.
  
  “We would like to make it clear that, contrary to some media reports and social media speculation, this incident did not involve any other performer or delegation member.
  
  “We maintain a zero-tolerance policy towards inappropriate behaviour at our event and are committed to providing a safe and secure working environment for all staff at the contest.
  
  “In light of this, Joost Klein’s behaviour towards a team member is deemed in breach of contest rules.”
  
  A follow-up statement said Dutch viewers would still be allowed to vote in the grand final and added that the Dutch jury result is still valid.
  
  
  The EBU also said that it will inform all telecommunications partners that the Netherlands is no longer taking part and will endeavour to block the lines for song number five, which was Klein’s performance slot.
  
  This year’s contest has faced multiple calls to boycott the competition over Israel’s participation and the week has seen protests in the centre of Malmo, the host city.
  
  During the dress rehearsals, Palestinian flags, which had been banned by the EBU, had been seen in the audience.
  
  Also during the show, Slimane stopped singing his entry Mon Amour to call for peace amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
  
  Joost Klein on stage (Martin Meissner/AP)
  
  Meanwhile, Alessandra Mele withdrew from being Norway’s points spokesperson and said in an Instagram video that Eurovision’s motto, united by music, were “empty words”.
  
  The broadcasting company NRK has said TV presenter Ingvild Helljesen will announce the jury votes from Norway instead.
  
  Kaarija, the jury spokesperson for Finland, and last year’s runner-up, also announced online that he had stepped down from his role as it “does not feel right”.
  
  Ahead of the grand final, Bambie accused the Israeli broadcaster of a rule break and said they are waiting on an official update from the EBU after raising “multiple complaints”.
  
  It comes after the singer missed their dress rehearsal as they felt they needed to bring a situation to the “urgent attention” of the EBU.
  
  In a post to X Irish singer Cmat said they would not be watching the final and encouraged others to follow suit.
  
  Live online videos show a police presence in Malmo as protestors with Palestinian flags take to the city streets.
  
  Croatia’s Baby Lasagna, real name Marko Purisic, has been tipped as a favourite to win the content, with the song Rim Tim Tagi Dim.
  
  The EBU has been approached for comment.

British Colleges Are Handling Protests Differently. Will It Pay Off?

Stephen Castle
Sat, May 11, 2024 

Kendall Gardner of Indiana addresses fellow pro-Palestinian protesters on the Oxford University campus in Oxford, England, on May 9, 2024. (Mary Turner/The New York Times)


CAMBRIDGE, England — Palestinian flags fluttered in the breeze above two neat rows of orange and green tents at Cambridge University on Thursday, where students read, talked and played chess at a small encampment to protest the Israel-Hamas war.

There were no police officers in sight and not a lot for them to do if they did turn up, unless they felt like joining a wellness circle or a workshop on kite-making.

Pro-Palestinian encampments have spread to 15 universities across Britain in recent days, but there were few signs yet of the violent confrontations that have shaken American campuses.

That is partly because college authorities here are adopting a more permissive approach, citing the importance of protecting free speech, even if the government is not entirely thrilled about the protests. It may also reflect the less polarized debate within Britain, where polls suggest the majority of people believe Israel should call a cease-fire.

At Oxford University, the vibe was more campsite than confrontation, with around 50 tents pitched on a prominent green lawn outside the Pitt Rivers Museum.

Despite the sunny weather, wooden boards covered grass that in places had churned to mud when authorities turned on water sprinklers in an unfriendly greeting for the campers (after discussion between the university and the students, the sprinklers were stopped Wednesday).

Supplies of sunscreen, water, juice and hot drinks lined a table, while a whiteboard displayed a running list of needs: cups, spoons and paper plates.

“People keep saying, ‘It’s a festival, they are having a jolly time,’” said Kendall Gardner, an American graduate student and protester. She disputed that idea emphatically: “This is very difficult, there is a lot of hostility being directed at us at all moments; we are running a miniature town, and this isn’t fun.”

Gardner, 26, who is from Fishers, Indiana, went viral in a video interview with Al Jazeera this week, explaining why Oxford students are demanding that the university divest from companies linked to Israel’s military. The interview has been viewed 15 million times on X, the social media platform.

Part of her motivation is her Jewish heritage, she said, pointing to what she described as genocide in the Gaza Strip. “My Judaism is so much part of why I am an activist,” she said. “To have someone tell you, ‘This keeps you safe’ — dead babies — it’s indescribable, and I am here to say, ‘No, that’s totally wrong.’”

Later in the afternoon — before a discussion on how to balance studies with protest, a vigil to commemorate people who had died in Gaza and some poetry readings — the Oxford students broke into a brief chant of “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” The phrase is regarded by some supporters of Israel as a rallying cry for the eradication of the country and is the type of language that concerns groups like the Union of Jewish Students, which says it represents 9,000 Jewish students across Britain and Ireland.

Edward Isaacs, the group’s president, said this week that antisemitism had reached an “all-time high” in British colleges and called on university leaders to “deliver swift and decisive action to safeguard Jewish life on campus.”

Partly in response to those concerns, Britain’s Conservative prime minister, Rishi Sunak, summoned the leaders of several universities to Downing Street on Thursday to discuss ways to tackle antisemitism.

Gardner said that Jewish students who oppose Israel’s action in Gaza are themselves being targeted. “There has been a lot of harassment of anti-Zionist Jewish students, calling them Nazis,” she said. “I get it all the time, people say to me, ‘You’re not a real Jew, you’re a fake Jew.’”

Rosy Wilson, 19, who is studying politics, philosophy and economics at Oxford and comes from Manchester, in the north of England, said she was reassured by the number of Jewish students at the encampment who “consider this a space that is safe.”

Wilson, who had a copy of the works of the philosopher Hegel in her tent, described as “bittersweet” the routine of study, discussion and activism at the camp. “I am really glad that while protesting something horrific we have been able to create a space that feels like a vision of a better world,” she said. “But I don’t think we should get caught up in that vision and forget why we are here in the first place.”

Some experts caution that it is too early to judge whether Britain will avoid the violence and arrests seen on some U.S. campuses.

“I wouldn’t say that couldn’t happen here,” said Feyzi Ismail, a lecturer in global policy and activism at Goldsmiths, University of London, where there have also been protests. “It depends how the government takes it, how threatening they feel the encampments are, how long they go on for and how they evolve.”

University authorities are, Ismail said, “in a difficult position: The more they crack down, the more this will grow, and I think university leaders are well aware of that.”

In Britain, the focus of pro-Palestinian demonstrators until now has been on big public marches, including those seen regularly in London, rather than on campuses.

Sally Mapstone, the president of Universities U.K., which represents colleges, said Thursday that university officials “may need to take action” if the protests interfere with life on campus.

Some analysts think that could happen if student behavior becomes more aggressive, or if the protesters themselves are targeted by demonstrators opposed to them, as at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Students said they believed they had been spared eviction from the encampments both because the tactics of British police are less confrontational than in the United States and because college leaders want to avoid inflaming the situation.

At the Oxford protest, where students have been offered “de-escalation training,” a handful of police officers arrive each day and walk around the encampment, although participants are urged not to speak to them.

Amytess Girgis, 24, a graduate student at Oxford from Grand Rapids, Michigan, said that police in Britain “are far less militarized than in the U.S.; the way the police are trained in the U.S. and the way that they are armed, it’s not conducive to de-escalation.” She added that she thought British authorities had probably seen what happened in America as a warning against police intervention.

In a statement, Oxford said it respects the “right to freedom of expression in the form of peaceful protests,” adding, “We ask everyone who is taking part to do so with respect, courtesy and empathy.”

Those backing the protests include more than 300 academic staff at Cambridge who have signed a public letter in solidarity.

“I do think the students are well-intentioned and peaceful,” said Chana Morgenstern, an Israeli citizen who is an associate professor in post-colonial and Middle Eastern literature at Cambridge. “They are pretty open to conversation with people who don’t agree with them as well. I’ve seen less progressive Jewish students in faculty come in to talk to the students, so I think this could be an opportunity to have an open public dialogue.”

In Cambridge, where tourists cruised the River Cam on punts not far from the student protest, disruption from the encampment has so far been minimal.

“It must be peaceful,” said Abbie Da Re, a visitor from Bury St. Edmunds, east of Cambridge, when asked about the encampment just 100 yards away. “I hadn’t even heard it.”

c.2024 The New York Times Company 

California Gov. Gavin Newsom says he’s ‘against divestment’ after Sac State changes policy language

Rosalio Ahumada, Ishani Desai
Fri, May 10, 2024 

While unveiling his revised $288 billion budget proposal Friday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom said he was “against divestment” amid the ongoing protests at several college campuses over the war in Gaza and a key demand that CSU and UC schools exit from Israel-tied investments.

The statement came three days after Sacramento State announced changes to its investment policy that would ensure it practices “socially responsible investment strategies which include not having direct investments in corporations and funds that profit from genocide, ethnic cleansing, and activities that violate fundamental human rights.” The revisions to the policy were presented to pro-Palestinian protesters on campus late Tuesday, who ended their encampment after eight days; a similar protest on UC Davis’ campus and at several other schools remain.

When asked, Newsom said that he had seen contradicting information “on Instagram” and from his policy advisors, and he told reporters to “ask us later this afternoon” for more details on his position regarding potential divestment.

A slide shows some of the proposed reductions in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s revised $288 billion budget proposal on Friday.

The revisions make Sacramento State one of the first CSU campuses to alter their policies amid the ongoing war in Gaza, which has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians living in Gaza since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing more than 1,200 Israelis in the deadliest attack on Jews since the Holocaust.

The updates to Sac State’s policies, signed off on by university President Luke Wood, show a variety of changes.

It includes Sacramento State seeking its five auxiliaries to investigate its direct and indirect investments to follow the expanded guidelines. The five auxiliaries are the Associated Students, University Enterprises Inc., University Union, University Foundation at Sac State and Capital Public Radio.

Sacramento State noted in its policy that the University Foundation does not have “any direct investments” with corporations and funds that have ties to the Israeli military. The policy also has added sections denouncing genocide and supporting student’s peaceful activism.

Students for Justice in Palestine said teachers from the Faculty for Justice in Palestine will sit on Sac State’s finance committee to review any possible divestment.

“While many colleges and universities have been encouraged to take sides and embrace a binary approach to global issues, conflicts, and wars across the world, we at Sacramento State have intentionally pursued a third space in these conversations — specifically focused on leading with listening and love — and being intentional about what is within our control,” Wood said in a video message about the policy changes released Thursday night.

Student organizers across the 23-campus CSU system have taken different approaches to protests and occupations, but of those who have made demands, theirs are nearly identical: they all want university administrators to disclose any financial ties to Israel or Israeli companies and, if such financial ties exist, that the university divest from them.

Newsom had largely stayed on the sidelines of the debate that has embroiled campuses across the nation and has resulted in arrests and other police action at Cal Poly Humboldt and UCLA, as well as the private University of Southern California.

Friday’s remarks were the first public comments the Democrat made on divestment in the state-run schools, over which he has no direct control. The governor does hold ex officio roles on both UC’s Board of Regents and Cal State’s trustee board.

Earlier this month, Newsom weighed in on responses by law enforcement — including the California Highway Patrol — at some protests on campus and condemned the violence, saying those who engaged in illegal behavior at UCLA and elsewhere should be held accountable, “including through criminal prosecution, suspension or expulsion.”

In late March, Newsom called for a ceasefire in the Middle East, saying in a letter to the state’s Muslim, Palestinian and Arab communities that “I support President Biden’s call for an immediate ceasefire as part of a deal to secure desperately needed relief for Gazan civilians and the release of hostages. I also unequivocally denounce Hamas’s terrorist attack against Israel. It is time to work in earnest toward an enduring peace that will furnish the lasting security, autonomy, and freedom that the Palestinians and the Israeli people both deserve.”

In December, he sent a letter to university leaders, urging them to do more to quell threats of violence against students “targeted because of a Jewish, Arab, or Muslim identity.” He wrote that “some faculty have inflamed the discourse with violent rhetoric. This is unacceptable and demands action.”

STRAIGHT OUT OF THE SIXTIES

'Hey hey, ho ho, the occupation has got to go!' Chants ring out from crowd during UC Berkeley commencement

Marisa Gerber
Sat, May 11, 2024

A tent encampment last month in front of UC Berkeley's Sproul Hall protested the Israel-Hamas war. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

UC Berkeley Chancellor Carol Christ opened her comments at the university’s commencement ceremony Saturday by addressing recent student protests on the campus with a long and deeply influential legacy of student activism.

“I’m saddened by how this conflict has divided students, faculty and staff,” Christ said. “While most of our campus community has engaged peacefully, political positions have bled over too easily and quickly to antisemitism and anti-Palestinian harassment.”

“We have lost the ability to talk with one another,” she added. “It is my hope that we can soon find a way to recognize our shared humanity.”

Whistles and applause rang out from the crowd gathered at the California Memorial Stadium. Eventually, as some people began to chant and shout, Christ continued her remarks over all the noise. A few minutes later, Sunny Lee, the university’s dean of students, asked the crowd to quiet down.

“If you continue to disrupt the event,” Lee said, “we will have you leave.”

A livestream of the event showed several law enforcement officers walking briskly behind the podium. A few minutes later, as louder chants began to ring out from the crowd — including a chorus of “Hey hey, ho ho, the occupation has got to go!" — Lee again asked for quiet.

Moments later, the livestream of the event cut out for several minutes and instead music, including Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin'," played in the background.

Since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war, universities across the state and nation have grappled with how to respond to both protests on campus and students' commentary about the war at off-campus sites and online.

In April, a dinner for graduating UC Berkeley law students at a dean's home devolved into a tense confrontation and accusations of anti-Muslim and anti-Jewish hatred — a scene that captured national headlines after video spread of the dean shouting at a student, “Please leave. No. Please leave."

Later in the month, Dan Mogulof, an assistant vice chancellor at the university, put out a statement saying UC Berkeley would "take the steps necessary to ensure the protest does not disrupt the university’s operations."

At USC, President Carol Folt's decision to rescind the valedictorian's speaking slot after undisclosed threats sent the campus into two solid weeks of protest and controversy. Many classes moved online and the university canceled its main stage ceremony, instead offering an alternative celebration at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

On Friday, Asna Tabassum, the Muslim valedictorian whose speech was canceled amid controversy over her pro-Palestinian views, received her diploma during the Viterbi School of Engineering graduation ceremony. Wearing a sash bearing her academic achievements, including her minor in resistance to genocide, Tabassum beamed, and her entire class and some spectators stood to applaud her.

Earlier this month, amid questions about why UCLA was so poorly prepared to stop a recent attack on a pro-Palestinian camp formed at the heart of campus, the university announced it had launched an internal probe and implemented new security procedures.

And Pomona College — where, last month, police in riot gear arrested several people who occupied the college president's office — announced recently that it was moving its Sunday commencement ceremony off-site to the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

Read more: 55 years after Reagan took on Berkeley, Newsom stays in the background amid roiling campus protests

But Berkeley has a uniquely long and influential role in the history of campus protests.

In the winter of 1964, students protesting free speech restrictions occupied the campus' Sproul Hall and, at one point, thousands of students surrounded the police car in which a student leader had been detained.

Protests went on for months, garnering national headlines, and eventually many of the restrictions were lifted — a step that paved the way for later movements in opposition of the Vietnam War and in support of environmentalism and women's rights. A decade ago, the campus that once tried to censor many of the student leaders invited them back to campus, lauding them as heroes.

In May 1969, on the sixth day of demonstrations over plans to develop land known as People’s Park, then-Gov. Ronald Reagan called in more than 2,000 National Guard troops and hundreds of highway patrolmen, who descended on campus with weapons. A helicopter hovered overhead, spraying protesters with tear gas.

More than half a century later, Gov. Gavin Newsom has taken a decidedly different approach, keeping largely in the background as universities across the state struggle with how to respond to current protests.

During Berkeley's graduation Saturday, momentum grew among a group of protesters who gathered in part of the stadium. Dressed in caps and gowns, some carried Palestinian flags and others waved black-and-white keffiyehs in the air. In video clips posted on X by the San Francisco Chronicle, protesters chanted "End, end the occupation!" and "Free Palestine!"

Mogulof, the assistant vice chancellor, noted in an email that the protesters eventually "left voluntarily and the ceremony proceeded and was completed as planned without further disruption."

Earlier in the ceremony, Sydney Roberts, the student body president, addressed the crowd, saying that, like many others gathered, she had chosen the university for its academic excellence but also to be part of a place that strives to make a difference in the world.

As Roberts spoke, a few shouts rang from the crowd and eventually Lee, the dean of students, walked to the lectern and interrupted.

“Many see your pain. We hear you,” Lee told the chanting members of the crowd before, again, asking them to quiet down out of respect for the student body president. Roberts returned to the microphone.

"This wouldn't be Berkeley without a protest," she said.

Small pro-Palestinian protests held Saturday as college commencements are held

SUSAN HAIGH
Updated Sat, May 11, 2024 













Israel Palestinians Campus Protests
A line of police in riot gear walk past police dismantling pro-Palestinian encampment at MIT, before dawn Friday, May 10, 2024, in Cambridge, Mass. (AP Photo/Josh Reynolds)
ASSOCIATED PRESS


Small pro-Palestinian protests popped up sporadically Saturday as colleges and universities from North Carolina to California held commencement ceremonies, including dozens of graduating students at Virginia Commonwealth University who walked out on an address by Gov. Glenn Youngkin.

While some of the estimated 100 students and family members who left during the Republican governor's speech showed support for Palestinians, others held signs signaling opposition to Youngkin's policies on education, according to WRIC-TV.

At the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a small group of demonstrators staged what appeared to be a silent protest during commencement at Camp Randall Stadium. A photo posted by the Wisconsin State Journal showed about six people walking through the rear of the stadium, with two carrying a Palestinian flag.


Marc Lovicott, a spokesperson for campus police, said the group, which he believed were students because they were wearing caps and gowns, “was kind of guided out but they left on their own.” No arrests were made.

The demonstration came after pro-Palestinian protesters at the campus agreed Friday to permanently dismantle their two-week-old encampment and not disrupt graduation ceremonies in return for the opportunity to connect with “decision-makers” who control university investments by July 1. The university agreed to increase support for scholars and students affected by wars in Gaza and Ukraine.

At the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, pro-Palestinian demonstrators splattered red paint on the steps of a building hours ahead of the school’s commencement ceremony and chanted on campus while students wearing light blue graduation gowns posed for photos, the News & Observer reported. At the University of Texas, Austin, a student held up a Palestinian flag during a commencement ceremony and refused to leave the stage briefly before being escorted away by security.

And at the University of California, Berkeley, a small group of pro-Palestinian demonstrators began waving flags and chanting during commencement and were escorted to the back of the stadium, where they were joined by others, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. There were no major counterprotests, but some attendees voiced frustration.

“I feel like they’re ruining it for those of us who paid for tickets and came to show our pride for our graduates,” said Annie Ramos, whose daughter is a student. “There’s a time and a place, and this is not it.”

Saturday's events were less dramatic than what happened on other campuses Friday, when police made dozens of arrests as pro-Palestinian protest encampments were dismantled at the University of Pennsylvania and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Those actions came hours after police tear-gassed demonstrators and took down a similar camp at the University of Arizona.

The Associated Press has recorded at least 75 instances since April 18 in which arrests were made at U.S. campus protests. Nearly 2,900 people have been arrested at 57 colleges and universities. The figures are based on AP reporting and statements from schools and law enforcement agencies.

At Virginia Commonwealth University, Youngkin, who also received an honorary doctorate of humane letters at Saturday's commencement, did not appear to address the students who left the event.

“The world needs your music,” Youngkin said during his speech. “You, all of you, will be the symphony. Make it a masterpiece.”

___

Associated Press writers Rick Callahan in Indianapolis and Kimberlee Kruesi in Nashville, Tennessee, contributed to this report.


VCU students walk out of commencement protesting Youngkin speech
Lauren Irwin
Sat, May 11, 2024


Students at the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) walked out of their commencement ceremony to protest an address by Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-Va.).

About 100 of the 1,200 graduates at the graduation ceremony Saturday quietly filed out of the Greater Richmond Convention Center, some wearing kaffiyeh scarves and signs reading “Teach Black history” and “Book bans [do not equal] respect for learning,” The Washington Post reported.

Youngkin, who won election in 2021, continued on with his speech. The Hill has reached out to Youngkin’s office for comment.

The Post reported that the Richmond university has a long history of having the sitting governor give a commencement address.

Earlier this week, the Virginia NAACP VCU chapter sent a letter to the Board of Visitors and the university president demanding that Youngkin’s invitation to speak be rescinded.

“Your administrative decision to continuously postpone the racial literacy requirement as well as comply with Governor Youngkin’s demand to view the syllabi is anti-democratic and anti-intellectual,” the organization said in the letter, reported by 13 News Now. “These actions not only undermine academic freedom from intellectual inquiry, they also perpetuate a narrative that overlooks the intricate nuances of racial history.”

The university handed out cards to attendees congratulating the graduates but also said if anyone disrupts the ceremony, they would be subject to removal, the Post reported.

The walk out follows many other demonstrations at university commencement ceremonies and the nationwide pro-Palestinian protests happening on college campuses. More than 2,000 people have been arrested at demonstrations across the country.

Police used pepper spray to disperse a crowd at VCU’s on-campus demonstration and 13 people, including six students, were arrested, according to the Post.

Students spoke to WWBT 12 On Your Side, saying there’s “a lot of distress” about Youngkin being chosen to speak.

They were opposed to multiple of Youngkin’s principles, including the LGBTQ+ community and critical race theory.

Youngkin criticized the college protests for crossing the line when “you begin to build encampments which are not allowed on college campuses, you intimidate other students, you’re trying to disrupt the operations of the school, that will not be allowed.”

Last week, students interrupted the graduation ceremony at the University of Michigan, protesting the school’s investments to companies with ties to Israel.
Graduation Can’t Stop These Students From Protesting

Amanda Yen
Sat, May 11, 2024 

Jessica Christian/Getty Images


Classes may be over but student protests showed no signs of stopping this weekend as hundreds of graduates from California to Virginia continued to demonstrate against Israel’s war in Gaza, as it appears poised to enter its most deadly stage.

Demonstrations were peaceful and minimally disruptive, a stark contrast to the violent arrests of students that university leaders had sometimes facilitated in previous weeks. Police intervention was nearly non-existent on Friday and Saturday’s demonstrations.

On Saturday, pro-Palestine protesters at the University of Wisconsin-Madison booed Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin during her speech at the commencement ceremony in the school’s football stadium. Rachel Hale, a UW student journalist and graduating senior, shared a photo from the ground that appeared to show a group of students holding up a Palestinian flag in protest.

The Wisconsin demonstration took observers by surprise, as the university had reached a deal with protesters the day before to avoid disruptions at “this weekend’s graduation ceremonies or other campus functions,” according to a university message. Now that the terms of the agreement appear to have been violated, the protesters may face disciplinary action. Kelly Tyrrell, a spokeswoman for the university, said the ceremony was “not interrupted” by the small protest.

“As we indicated, we will be addressing any potential conduct violations,” Tyrrell told The Daily Beast.

Meanwhile, at the historically protest-heavy University of California in Berkeley, protesters enacted a wave of demonstrations at the university-wide commencement Saturday morning. As Chancellor Carol Christ welcomed graduates and guests, a few students stood up, waved Palestinian flags, and started singing, “Hey hey, ho ho, the occupation has got to go,” the Bay Area Mercury News reported.

Officials paused the speeches to warn protesters they’d be kicked out if they didn’t quiet down, and Christ was able to finish her speech. But the demonstrations continued as hundreds of students marched over to a section of the bleachers near the stage, stomping as they cheered, “Free, free Palestine.”

Dan Mogulof, UC Berkeley’s Assistant Vice Chancellor for Communications, said the protesters left voluntary and no one was arrested.

“UC Berkeley strives to celebrate the achievements of our graduates in a safe and respectful environment,” Mogulof said in a statement to The Daily Beast. “While today’s commencement was, at times, unfortunately disrupted, it did not prevent us from honoring the hard work and accomplishments of our students.”

Across the country, graduates of Virginia Commonwealth University walked out of their commencement ceremony during a speech by Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, both in support of Palestine and to protest the governor’s anti-LGBTQ+ and anti-Black history policies. Some of the protesters wore keffiyehs, and others held signs that read “Teach Black History” and “Book Bans ≠ Respect For Learning,” The Washington Post reported.

This weekend’s protests continued a nationwide trend of student demonstrations at graduation, which began last week at the University of Michigan and a few other schools.

On Saturday, as commencement protests continued, Israel ordered new evacuations as it pressed its offensive into the border city of Rafah, where more than 1.4 million Palestinians are sheltering with virtually nowhere left to go. The Israeli military has characterized the attack as a targeted operation to take out Hamas militants. The United Nations has warned the offensive would cripple humanitarian efforts in a region where famine is imminent and hospitals run on reserve fuel.

The U.N.’s food agency said it was projected to run out of food for southern Gaza by Saturday afternoon, a U.N. agency official told the Associated Press.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Pro-Palestine student protests continue at weekend commencement ceremonies

Lauren Irwin
Sat, May 11, 2024 



Pro-Palestine protests have continued at multiple universities this weekend, with students attempting to send a message during their commencement ceremonies.

Student at University of North Carolina Chapel Hill protested outside campus buildings, splattering red paint on the steps of one, the News and Observer reported.

“Today is UNC’s graduation commencement and students have established an encampment at the famous bell tower, where many graduates will want to take their graduation photos,” National Students for Justice in Palestine posted online.

At the end of the chancellor’s commencement address, students moved up the center aisle carrying two Palestinian flags. They were met with boos and people chanting “USA!” The people were ushered away by police, the outlet reported.

Students demonstrating at the North Carolina university clashed last week, when counter protesters held up an American flag on campus while activists threw items at them after attempting to replace it with a Palestinian flag.

The scene resonated with people across the country, and a GoFundMe was set up to throw the fraternity men “a Rager.” It raised over $500,000.

In Wisconsin, a handful of students quietly protested the war. Roughly 20 students stood and turned their backs during University of Wisconsin-Madison Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin gave her address, Wisconsin Public Radio reported.

Other students wore messages including “There are no universities in Gaza” and “Free Palestine.” A group of students carrying a Palestinian flag were escorted by police out of the arena.

In Virginia, about 100 graduates at Virginia Commonwealth University walked out of their ceremony to protest an address given by Gov. Glenn Youngkin. They were protesting the ongoing war and Youngkin’s ideologies.

The commencement protests follow weeks of demonstrations at more than 400 universities across the country. From the Ivy Leagues to small colleges, students are demanding that their school’s divest from Israeli companies or companies that have ties with Israel.

More than 2,000 arrests have been made, as universities grapple with how to balance free speech and disruptions on campus.

Pro-Palestinian protesters disrupted graduation ceremonies during the 2024 University of Colorado Denver Commencement Program Saturday.



Gen Z students lead pro-Palestine demonstrations while their Boomer professors see parallels to past protest eras

Hannah Getahun
Sat, May 11, 2024 


Students and their professors are asking universities to divest from Israel.


At Indiana University, protesters say they've been met with a militarized response from police.


Professors say the current protests share stark differences and chilling similarities to past ones.

On April 25, a day after Indiana University made a controversial change to its protest policies, students built an encampment on the school's Dunn Meadow.

The meadow had been designated a free speech lawn since 1969, when the school experienced increased student protests over tuition hikes, anti-Black racism, and the Vietnam War.

Multiple generations of activists are now gathered on that same ground to protest Israel's war on Gaza — though the police presence was much different than what protesters before had known or experienced, per people who spoke to Business Insider.

The decision made on April 24 required that the "temporary or permanent installation of structures in Dunn Meadow (including, but not limited to posters, tents, etc.) at any time must be approved in advance by the university and, if approved, adhere to the guidelines provided by the university," according to a statement from Indiana University President Pamela Whitten.

The university enforced its policy against the encampments by calling police to arrest demonstrators who did not comply with the rule against "unapproved temporary or permanent structures," it said in a press release.

A statement from Whitten shared with Business Insider said the policy change was made to "balance free speech and safety in the context of similar protests occurring nationally."

The change resulted in what Barbara Dennis, a 64-year-old professor at Indiana University's School of Education and self-described "longtime peace activist," called a "militarized" police response.

A Palestinian flag waves over the Indiana University Liberated Zone.Isabella Volmert/AP Photo

She joined the campus protests on April 25 alongside her husband, an IU staff member. Within hours, Dennis was detained — and is now appealing a one-year ban from entering the university campus.

Dennis said the response was unlike anything she had witnessed on campus since she began teaching there in 2001 and went against everything she knew beforehand about the university's history.
From Vietnam to the Israel-Hamas War

When Dunn Meadow was established in 1969, official university policy dictated that overnight encampments were not allowed. Despite this, Dennis said the policy had never been enforced until now.

She said that during the Vietnam War era, South African Apartheid in the 1980s, and the first Gulf War, protest tents were left up in the meadow, sometimes for months.

Dennis described similar scenes while on campus witnessing the Iraq War protests and the Occupy Wall Street movement. She said a kitchen was erected during protests, and people slept there overnight.

"It's not just that the militarization is new," Dennis told BI, "IU had previously allowed people to camp in the meadow in peaceful protests without invoking its own policy on overnight tents."

IU did not respond to questions about enforcing its overnight tent policy in the past and pointed Business Insider to public statements from Whitten.
'We know this kind of thing has happened on college campuses'

Videos and images from college campuses across the nation over the past weeks show a mass police presence and dozens or hundreds of demonstrators being detained. In the US, over 2,000 demonstrators have been arrested so far, The New York Times reported.

At Columbia and City College of New York, 300 protesters were arrested in one night on April 30.

As students face university and police responses to their protests, school faculty and staff are also taking a stand and, in some cases, protecting students by getting in front of the police or forming human chains.

Pro-Palestinian protesters lock arms at the entrance to Hamilton Hall on the campus of Columbia University in New York City.Jia Wu/AFP via Getty Images

Dennis said that when she was arrested, she and three other faculty members tried to stand between students and police. Though she said that none of the protests on college campuses that she's ever participated in or witnessed have required professors to protect students similarly, she said that college campuses have sometimes experienced worse violence.

"We just passed that anniversary of the Kent State massacre," Dennis told BI. "We know this kind of thing has happened on college campuses. College protests haven't been completely free of this kind of military police response."

On May 4, 1970, four unarmed students at Kent State University were killed and nine others were injured when the Ohio National Guard opened fire on protesters opposed to the expansion of the Vietnam War. None of the guardsmen received criminal convictions for their actions.

The Indiana University Police Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BI.
Passing the torch to Gen Z

Bryce Greene, a Gen Z graduate student at IU who helped found the school's Palestine Solidarity Committee, helped to launch the encampment to "protest the genocide and, precisely, of our school's complicity in it," he told Business Insider.

The main goals of the encampments, Greene said, are to get the university to disclose any investments in Israeli companies or weapons manufacturers and divest from them.

Some students demand the school cut ties with the Naval Surface Warfare Center in Crane, Indiana. IU's STEM departments have research partnerships with the facility, which helps in the research and development of warship and submarine systems. The University also announced late last year that it had invested $111 million in partnership with the NSWC to advance "strategic initiatives focused on advancements in microelectronics, nanotechnology, artificial intelligence, machine learning and cybersecurity" for defense purposes.

Greene is also appealing a five-year ban on campus after his own arrest on April 27.

Representatives for IU did not immediately respond to questions asking why there were discrepancies in bans, but they pointed Business Insider to statements about campus safety made by Whitten. The ACLU of Indiana is suing the campus, claiming these bans violate free speech rights.

All the arrested protesters, including professors, have been banned from Indiana University's campus for a year.Jeremy Hogan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

While on campus, however, Greene said he and other students witnessed faculty shielding students from police and offering help to students who lost housing due to school suspensions.

Dennis said that in her holding cell during her arrest, she sang "old hippie songs and freedom ballads" as she comforted young students.

"I knew things were going to be OK, Dennis said. "I was the oldest person arrested that day."

Greene said many faculty members feel similarly to students and have some institutional power to help advance the cause.

"Faculty are typically more permanent fixtures of the institution. If they are upset, well, that causes long-term problems that can't be swept under the rug for a year or two," Greene said.
'How can we ignore what's going on and consider ourselves educators?'

Greene and Dennis are both supporting the student encampment following their arrests. Dennis still returns to the encampment — she received a stay on her ban as part of her appeal — and encourages other educators to participate in the student-led movement.

"I'm unsupportive of war as an answer to any sort of human or ecological problem, I think we need to push our moral and intellectual capabilities to really solve our problems in peaceful ways," Dennis told BI.

The current student protests have the fixtures of something from the Vietnam War era: student conversations on blankets, an outdoor library, and teach-ins by university faculty. At the IU encampment, Dennis is participating in a teach-in herself.

"UNICEF has said that Palestine is the worst place in the world to be a child," Dennis said. "I mean, how can we ignore that and consider ourselves educators? That just doesn't seem fathomable to me."

Virginia Commonwealth University students walk out of graduation

Ana Faguy - BBC News, Washington
Sat, May 11, 2024 



Dozens of Virginia Commonwealth University students walked out of their graduation ceremony on Saturday, partly over a speaker's response - the state governor - to campus protests.

It comes as US school officials brace for possible disruptions of commencement events over Israel-Gaza war protests.

Dozens of colleges roiled by protests are holding graduations this weekend.

More than 2,000 people have been arrested since protest began mid-April.

Social media posts on Saturday showed Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) students in caps and gowns leaving the room as Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin began his commencement address.

Some students had criticised the selection of Mr Youngkin as that year's speaker, both for his opposition to a racial literacy requirement being considered by VCU as well as for saying that encampments on college campuses should not be allowed.

Video posted online show some of the VCU protesters chanting "disclose, divest - we will not stop we will not rest".

Many students protesters in the US are demanding that their schools, many with massive endowments, financially cut ties from Israel.

People were clapping so loudly, members of the audience couldn't hear Mr Youngkin speak, Sereen Haddad, a second-year VCU student who helped organise the protest, told the BBC on Saturday evening.

Ms Haddad said some 150 people marched outside the ceremony, including students who walked out.

Thirteen people, including six students, were arrested at VCU when the encampment there was cleared by police on 29 April.

Mr Youngkin's speech went on as planned despite the walk-out. He later posted a message on social media congratulating graduates and did not comment on the protest.

What do student protesters at US universities want?


'Student arrests will be my final college memory'

At another commencement on Saturday, the University of California Berkeley Chancellor Carol Christ opened the ceremony by acknowledging the weeks of demonstrations from protesters.

"I'm saddened by how this conflict has divided students, faculty and staff," she said, according to the LA Times.

The remarks drew some applause as well as chants of: "Hey hey, ho ho, the occupation has got to go".

Some 20 students stood up and began waving signs, Palestinian flags and chanting, "Free Palestine" as during another speech, the San Francisco Chronicle reported, and they were later joined in chants by more graduates.

In a statement, UC Berkeley said that the event continued despite being "unfortunately disrupted" and that protesters who left the ceremony did so voluntarily. No one was arrested.

The protest came a day after eight students wore shirts spelling out "UC divest" during the law school graduation ceremony.

In the past month, the BBC has counted more than 130 US colleges and universities with protests against the ongoing war in Gaza.

Campus protests have led to some graduation ceremonies being cancelled, including at New York's Columbia University, which said last week it was ditching its 15 May commencement in favour of smaller celebrations to focus on keeping students "safe".

Many schools have brought in additional measures for the graduation events, such as requiring identification, instituting clear bag policies, and issuing warnings that people causing a disruption will be removed.

Some commencement speakers have also withdrawn, like author Colson Whitehead, who said he would no longer be the keynote speaker at the University of Massachusetts Amherst event after police cleared an encampment there.

Others have had their speeches cancelled.

The University of Vermont and Xavier University of Louisiana recently rescinded invitations to have the US ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, speak under students pressure to drop the Biden administration official from the line-up.

Some universities, including University of Pennsylvania and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, had police clear encampments and arrest protesters on Friday ahead of graduation ceremonies.

At the University of Arizona, police used "loud munitions" and "chemical munitions" to clear remaining protesters from an encampment, the university said.

While some universities have avoided clearing the protest camps, others have brought in police to help remove demonstrators.

Earlier this week, the chief of police at Arizona State University was placed on paid administrative leave "pending a review" after the school received a number of complaints about his handling of the campus protests in late April, ASU said on Friday.

Campus Gaza rallies may subside, but experts see possible 'hot summer of protest'

Brad Brooks
Sun, May 12, 2024 







Protest in support of Palestinians, at Auraria Campus in Denver


By Brad Brooks

DENVER, Colorado (Reuters) - About a dozen students arrested by police clearing a sit-in at a Denver college campus emerged from detainment to cheers from fellow pro-Palestinian protesters, several waving yellow court summons like tiny victory flags and imploring fellow demonstrators not to let their energy fade.

Just how much staying power the student demonstrations over the war in Gaza that have sprung up in Denver and at dozens of universities across the United States will have is a key question for protesters, school administrators and police, with graduation ceremonies being held, summer break coming and high-profile encampments dismantled.


The student protesters passionately say they will continue until administrators meet demands that include permanent ceasefire in Gaza, university divestment from arms suppliers and other companies profiting from the war, and amnesty for students and faculty members who have been disciplined or fired for protesting.

Academics who study protest movements and the history of civil disobedience say it's difficult to maintain the people-power energy on campus if most of the people are gone. But they also point out that university demonstrations are just one tactic in the wider pro-Palestinian movement that has existed for decades, and that this summer will provide many opportunities for the energy that started on campuses to migrate to the streets.

EVOLVE OR FADE AWAY

Dana Fisher is a professor at American University in Washington, D.C., and author of several books on activism and grassroots movements who has seen some of her own students among protesters on her campus.

She noted the college movement spread organically across the country as a response to police called onto campus at Columbia University on April 18, when more than 100 people were arrested. Since those arrests, at least 2,600 demonstrators have been detained at more than 100 protests in 39 states and Washington, D.C., according to The Appeal, a nonprofit news organization.

"I don't see enough organizational infrastructure to sustain a bunch of young people who are involved in a movement when they are not on campus," Fisher said. "Either the movement has to evolve substantially or it can't continue."

Following the initial arrests at Columbia, students there occupied a classroom building, an escalation of the protest that led to even more arrests. Similarly in Denver, police on April 26 arrested 45 people at an encampment protest at the Auraria campus – which serves the University of Colorado-Denver, Metropolitan State University and the Community College of Denver.

Then on May 8, Auraria protesters staged a short-lived sit-in inside the Aerospace and Engineering Sciences building, developed in part with a $1 million gift from arms manufacturer Lockheed Martin.

Students in Denver say the movement's spread from the coasts to the heartland and to smaller universities shows it has staying power. Student protests also have flared outside the U.S.

"We're keeping our protests up and our encampment going until our demands are met, however long that takes," said Steph, a 21-year-old student on the Auraria campus who declined to give their full name for fear of reprisals. "We'll be here through summer break and into next fall if needed."

Fisher, the academic, said the police response to protests has helped ignite a sense of activism in a new generation of students. She thinks the current campus demonstrations foreshadow a "long, hot summer of protest" about many issues, and that the Republican national convention in July and the Democratic national convention in August will be ripe targets for massive protest.

"The stakes have gotten much higher, and that's very much due to the way that police have responded in a much more aggressive and repressive way than they did even back in the 1960s," Fisher said, referring to student-led protests against the Vietnam War.

"And then you just plop right down in the middle of all that the presidential election?" she said. "It's a crazy recipe for one hell of a fall."

AFTER GRADUATION, A GHOST TOWN

Michael Heaney, a American lecturer in politics at the University of Glasgow in Scotland whose research and books have focused on U.S. protest movements said the campus demonstrations are just one tactic in the wider movement to support Palestinians, an ongoing effort that goes back decades.

Heaney said that the geographical diffusion of the university encampments to places like Denver is an opportunity to bring the message of the wider movement to places where it may not have been before.

Heaney added that "protests for any movement are episodic" and pointed to the various manifestations of the African-American Civil Rights movement in the U.S., going back 200 years. Just because one moment of protest ends does not foretell its overall demise.

He said pro-Palestinian protests in American cities this summer could grow if Israel's offensive in Gaza continues, and that such demonstrations would have been stoked by the widespread university activism.

On Denver's Auraria campus, while students were cleared from the classroom building, about 75 tents remain on a grassy quad, where protesters say they serve 200 meals each day in a mess hall tent. One of the student protest organizers, Jacob, 22, said he's convinced the facts on the ground in Gaza are what will sustain the encampment.

"After graduation it may be a ghost town on this campus - but we'll still be here," he said. "We're not going anywhere."

(Reporting by Brad Brooks in Denver; editing by Donna Bryson and Aurora Ellis)

50,000 protest Georgia’s foreign agent bill as US sounds alarm over ‘Kremlin-style’ law

Reuters
Sat, May 11, 2024 

About 50,000 opponents of a “foreign agents” bill marched peacefully in heavy rain through the Georgian capital on Saturday, after the United States said the country had to choose between the “Kremlin-style” law and the people’s Euro-Atlantic aspirations.

“We are deeply alarmed about democratic backsliding in Georgia,” White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan wrote on X.

“Georgian parliamentarians face a critical choice – whether to support the Georgian people’s Euro-Atlantic aspirations or pass a Kremlin-style foreign agents’ law that runs counter to democratic values,” he said. “We stand with the Georgian people.”


The bill, which would require organizations receiving more than 20% of their funding from abroad to register as “agents of foreign influence,” has touched off a rolling political crisis in Georgia, where thousands have taken to the streets to demand the bill be withdrawn.

The crowd on Saturday waved Georgian, European Union and some Ukrainian flags and in a break with the past, included more older protesters as well as the many young people who have thronged the streets over the past month.

Demonstrators protest against the foreign agents bill in Tbilisi, Georgia, on May 11, 2024. - Irakli Gedenidze/Reuters

“The government should hear the free people of Georgia,” said one protester in her 30s who gave her name as Nino, waved a large Georgian flag and led one of three columns that converged on the city center, which blocked many of the city’s roads and filled the cobblestoned heart of Tbilisi’s old town.

“We want to enter the European Union with our proud nation and our dignity,” she said.

Anuki, a 22-year-old student of acting, said it was her generation’s responsibility “to make sure that our future and the future of generations after us are safe, that they have freedom of speech, and they are free, basically.”

“And we don’t want to be part of Russia,” she added. “We never wanted to be part of Russia. And it has always been and always will be our goal to be part of Europe.”

Parliament, which is controlled by the ruling Georgian Dream party and its allies, will begin committee hearings on the bill’s third and final reading on Monday. Opposition groups had called for a fresh wave of protests from Saturday.

The crisis has pitted the Georgian Dream ruling party against a coalition of opposition parties, civil society, celebrities and the country’s figurehead president, with mass demonstrations shutting down much of central Tbilisi almost nightly for more than a month.

Georgian opponents of the bill have dubbed it “the Russian law,” comparing it to legislation used to target critics of President Vladimir Putin’s Kremlin.

The European Union, which granted Georgia candidate status in December, has said that the bill will pose a serious obstacle to further integration if passed.

Georgian Dream says the bill will promote transparency and Georgian national sovereignty.

Demonstrators protest against the foreign agents bill in Tbilisi, Georgia, on May 11, 2024. - Irakli Gedenidze/Reuters

Bidzina Ivanishvili, the founder of Georgian Dream, has said the law is necessary to stop the West trying to use Georgians as “cannon fodder” in a confrontation with Russia.

Sullivan said that Georgian Dream appeared to be deliberately trying to break with the West, even as both the ruling party and Georgian public opinion has traditionally been in favor of the country joining the EU and the US-led NATO military alliance.

Sullivan wrote: “Georgian Dream’s recent rhetoric, proposed legislative changes, and actions go against the aspirations of the Georgian people and are designed to isolate Georgians from the United States and Europe.”

Thousands march in Georgia over foreign influence bill

Rayhan Demytrie - Caucasus correspondent, BBC News
Sat, May 11, 2024 

Thousands marched in the capital, fearing the bill will silence opposition [Getty Images]

Tens of thousands of Georgians have taken to the streets of the capital Tbilisi on Saturday evening to protest a controversial "foreign influence" bill backed by the government.

Protesters marched to the capital's Europe Square holding Georgian and EU flags, chanting “no to the Russian law”.

The law would target civil society organisations and independent media that receive foreign funding.

Massive rallies have gripped the Black Sea Caucasus country for nearly a month after the ruling Georgian Dream party reintroduced the bill.

Despite a campaign of intimidation ahead of Saturday's rally - in which dozens of NGO workers, activists and opposition politicians received threats or were physically assaulted - protesters turned up in their thousands undeterred by the pouring rain.

Opposition parties say the bill - coined "Russian law" after Russia's passing of similar legislation in 2012 - will be used by the government to clamp down on dissent.

The US has said the bill threatens free speech.

In neighbouring Russia, the law has since been used to marginalise voices challenging the Kremlin - including prominent cultural figures, media organisations and civil society groups.

Many Georgians in the rally do not want Russia's authoritarian-style leadership crossing into their country.

"We don't need to return to the Soviet Union," 38-year-old Georgian-language teacher Lela Tsiklauri, said.

Protesters believe the proposed law would bring in Russian-style restrictions [Getty Images]

Some estimates suggest as many as 50,000 Georgians braved the rain to march [Getty Images]

"We are protecting our European future and our freedom," said another protester, Mariam Meunrgia, 39, who works for a German company.

The law, if passed, could harm Georgia's attempt to join the EU, which has given it candidate status.

On Friday, foreign ministers of Nordic and Baltic states issued a joint statement urging the government in Tbilisi to reconsider the bill

Last week, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the Georgian people want a "European future".

"Georgia is at a crossroads. It should stay the course on the road to Europe," she posted on X.

But the Georgian Dream government has defended the bill, saying it will "boost transparency" over NGOs' foreign funding. It aims to sign the measure into law by mid-May.

If adopted, the law would require that any independent NGO and media organisation receiving more than 20% of its funding from abroad to register as an "organisation pursuing the interests of a foreign power".

But the protesters fear it could be used to crush critical voices ahead of parliamentary elections later this year.

The bill cleared its second parliamentary stage by a margin of 83 votes to 23. After a third reading, it has to be signed by President Salome Zurabishvili, who has vowed to veto it - although Georgian Dream has sufficient numbers in parliament to overrule her.

In 2023, mass street protests forced Georgian Dream to drop plans for similar measures.



Georgia protest against ‘Russian law’ draws tens of thousands in Tbilisi
FRANCE 24
Sat, May 11, 2024 at 12:37 p.m. MDT·1 min read




Around 50,000 protesters marched through central Tbilisi on Saturday at a rally against a controversial foreign influence bill, dubbed "the Russian law", and backed by the Georgian government. Critics say the bill is inspired by a law in Russia that has been used to clamp down on dissent.

Demonstrators converged on Tbilisi's central Europe Square on Saturday evening in the latest of a series of anti-government protests against the draft legislation. Massive rallies have gripped the Black Sea Caucasus country for almost a month after the ruling Georgian Dream party reintroduced the bill.

Under pouring rain, protesters on Saturday chanted "Georgia!" and waved red-and-white Georgian flags and blue EU flags on the large square.

"We are protecting our European future and our freedom," Mariam Meunrgia, 39, who works for a German company, told AFP, adding that she fears the country is going in the direction of Russia.

"We don't need to return to the Soviet Union," said 38-year-old Georgian-language teacher Lela Tsiklauri.

The bill, which would require organisations receiving more than 20% of their funding from abroad to register as "agents of foreign influence", has sparked a rolling political crisis and massive protests in Georgia.