Milwaukee, WI – About 400 students and community members gathered to protest Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump outside the Peck School of the Arts at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, April 3, where inside Fox News was hosting a live town hall event with the candidate.

Members of Youth Empowered in the Struggle (YES), Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), Black Student Union (BSU), African Student Association (ASA), Student Union Movement (SUM) and Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) expressed their anger over Trump being invited to UWM.

“We want to know why Chancellor Mark Mone allows a racist like Trump on this campus,” Oscar Hernandez of YES said to the crowd, “Why did he allow this hateful rhetoric to be on our campus? That’s harmful to our communities.”

Protesters then marched through the streets around the university and locked arms as they advanced towards where the police had barricaded the entrance to the event. Protesters faced off with the police, chanting, “No Trump, no KKK, no racist USA!” and “Dump Trump!” A student was grabbed from the crowd and arrested as five police officers leaped on top of him and carried him away.

The protesters then held an impromptu sit-in, demanding that the university administration have the student released immediately.

“This isn’t the first time that Mone has ignored the voices of students. The budget cuts have already been made, however planning is still underway to figure out how the money will be divided,” said Marina Leigh, a member of SDS, referencing the $250 million budget cut UWM has been facing. “We need to say no to tuition hikes. The only crime that was committed today was administration’s decision to allow Trump’s hate speech on our campus, yet deny the needs of students and allow a peaceful protester to be arrested.”

After several hours of sitting in, the police released the student, who goes by the name Chevy, on a disorderly conduct citation and a $300 ticket. The student organizations involved have vowed to help fundraise and fight against the charge.

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