Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from Tulane and Loyola SDS.
At approximately 3:00 am, when students were sleeping and supporters who had gathered to ensure their safety were resting, a militarized coalition consisting of TUPD, NOPD, and Louisiana State Police (LSP) violently disassembled the peaceful encampment. With no dispersal warning, over 100 officers put the safety of students and community members at great risk by brutally arresting 14 unarmed individuals, including 3 bystanders, using riot gear, assault rifles, and armored vehicles. Louisiana State Police specifically targeted student organizers, resulting in two injured students being taken to the hospital.
Jacksonville, FL – Students for a Democratic Society at the University of North Florida began a show of solidarity with the people of Gaza on Tuesday, April 30. They set up on the UNF Green to demand that UNF divest from any partnerships with the racist state of Israel, and to show solidarity with college students across the country protesting for the people of Gaza.
Milwaukee, WI – May 2 marks the fourth day since students, faculty and community supporters flocked to Mitchell Lawn at UW-Milwaukee on April 29 after a massive rally and march. The end of the march saw the rapid assembly of tents and the official launch of an encampment for Palestine, bringing Milwaukee into the national movement sparked by the actions of heroic students at Columbia University and Cal Poly Humboldt.
Tampa, FL – On May 1, students at the University of South Florida began the third day of their Gaza solidarity encampment at the MLK Plaza. Tampa Bay Students for a Democratic Society started the encampment Monday after their Nakba anniversary protest. They demanded USF disclose and divest its investments in Israel, support Palestinian students and stop attacks on student movements.
Tampa, FL – On Wednesday, April 30, University of South Florida students and community members embarked on their second day of setting up a solidarity encampment for Gaza at the Martin Luther King Plaza. Their demands are to disclose the university's investments in companies that fund and prop up Israel, divest from them, publicly condemn the genocide happening in Gaza and express support for Palestinian students, and stop all attacks on pro-Palestine student protesters.
Milwaukee, WI – On International Workers Day, the Milwaukee Area Labor Council AFL-CIO passed a resolution supporting the “Popular University” encampment for Palestine at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Chicago, IL – At an April 30 press conference, speakers announced that a motion for a preliminary injunction has been filed in federal court by the Coalition to March on the DNC. They are asking a federal judge to block the city of Chicago from enforcing its ordinance regulating parade permits, as it violates the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
Speakers at the press conference included Chris Williams, Attorney; Hatem Abudayyeh, US Palestinian Community Network (USPCN); Faayani Aboma Mijana, Coalition to March on the DNC; and Liz Rathburn, Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) – University of Illinois at Chicago.
Tallahassee, FL – On the morning of Wednesday, May 1, about 30 students at Florida State University (FSU) established a Palestine solidarity encampment on Landis Green, the epicenter of FSU campus. They had camped for three days prior to demand a meeting with FSU President Richard McCullough.
Orlando, FL – On April 26, an informal student conduct hearing was held at the University of Central Florida (UCF) in the political repression case of Marcus Polzer, a UCF Students for a Democratic Society member.
Austin, TX – On Monday, April 28, around 1 p.m., University of Texas at Austin students and community members gathered on the UT South Lawn to set up a Popular University encampment. A group of around 40 people was quickly joined by hundreds more supporting students, as booming chants of, “Free free Palestine,” echoed throughout UT’s South Mall.
