Pro-Palestinian protests have been spreading beyond the East and West coasts, with Midwest colleges and universities joining in. The demonstrations are calling for divestments from companies that do business with Israel and increased transparency about university ties to Israel. The protests have been prompted by the deaths of tens of thousands of Palestinians at the hands of Israeli military, resulting in a mobilization of college students across the U.S. and the world.
While protests at Ivy League schools and larger institutions in major cities have faced forceful pushback from university officials, demonstrations at many universities in the Midwest have continued relatively peacefully without much police escalation or incidents. On campuses like Ohio State University, University of Nebraska, University of Kansas, and Iowa State University, pro-Palestinian demonstrations have been held without major police intervention. The protesters are calling attention to the ongoing financial support provided by the U.S. towards the genocide of the Palestinian people.
The University of Missouri saw a successful protest earlier this week, with students abiding by school policies and city ordinances. This contrasts with the 2015 protest where students camped out at the university to address racism, resulting in lower applications from prospective students. Establishing a more peaceful approach, the university has prohibited camping on school grounds, leading to a successful and nonviolent protest this time around. Meanwhile, at DePaul University in Illinois, officials are making efforts to avoid police intervention at a Chicago encampment where students have gathered for a second day.
Despite protests at Ivy League schools and universities being portrayed as violent by some right-wing pundits and news outlets, many students, faculty, and witnesses have reported being attacked by police and counter-protesters. There have been clashes between pro-Palestinian protesters and pro-Israel counter-protesters, with unclear reports on the instigation of violence before or after police intervention. Some politicians, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rep. Cori Bush, have spoken out against the police escalation at universities and in cities across the country, calling for de-escalation and an end to repression of student protesters.
