Amnesty International USA condemns the obstructive and repressive responses by university administrations and the police crackdown on largely peaceful protests against Israel’s brutal war on Gaza as it continues with US backing in and around college campuses across the country.
“We urge university administrations to safeguard and facilitate the right of students to peacefully and safely protest or counter protest on their campuses,” said Paul O’Brien, Executive Director of Amnesty International USA. “As could easily be foreseen, the decisions at some universities to call in law enforcement actually escalated the situation and exposed their students and faculty staff to the risk of violence.”
Amnesty International reminds school administrators that they should summon law enforcement to disperse campus demonstrations only as a last resort, such as in the face of widespread violence or incitement to violence and discrimination. Not only did schools’ administrations place students and faculty staff at known risk of police violence by having law enforcement disperse and arrest non-violent protesters, but they also failed to implement appropriate measures to keep protesters safe from violence by third party actors, such as at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA).
“While a few universities agreed to dialogue with protesters and put their concerns up for a vote, many college administrations called in law enforcement, which then resorted to…
