April 25, 2024 - US university protests

A group of Democratic Georgia state lawmakers on Thursday condemned the “excessive force used by Georgia State Patrol” during arrests at Emory University.

“The use of extreme anti-riot tactics by Georgia State Patrol, including tasers and gas, is a dangerous escalation to protests which were by all accounts peaceful and nonviolent,” according to the statement posted on social media by Georgia state Rep. Ruwa Romman, a Democrat who is also Palestinian.

The group blamed Georgia leaders and said they have created an environment where “state police feel free or perhaps are directed— to respond to normal peaceful protests with violence.”

“We cannot allow this dangerous repression to continue. Regardless of one's views on this or any other issue, there is no justification for this kind of excessive force,” they continued in the statement. “We call on all state officials to immediately deescalate and prevent further harm to our constituents.”

The ACLU of Georgia also said on Thursday it was concerned about law enforcement’s response to the protests.

“The freedom to protest without retribution is essential to our democracy. Atlanta has historically been a place where citizens could freely exercise their rights to protest, but we have unfortunately seen a series of unconstitutional crackdowns on speech and protest across Georgia in recent years,” the organization said in a statement. “Colleges and universities should be places where viewpoints, expression, debate, and free speech are encouraged, not suppressed.”

Georgia's attorney general, Chris Carr, weighed in on the pro-Palestinian protests and encampments at Georgia universities like Emory.

"We will proudly stand by any university that takes action to protect the health and safety of Georgia’s students," Carr said on social media. "Nobody has the legal right to shut down our schools by camping out and making antisemitic threats."

Carr's comments come after a clash between protesters and police officers at Emory University in Atlanta. Police used pepper spray and pepper balls to clear the area of demonstrators, a CNN team on the scene reported. At least two professors were also detained during the protests.

Palestine Legal filed a civil rights complaint against Columbia University this week through the US Department of Education, demanding the agency's Office for Civil Rights investigate the school's treatment of Palestinian students and allies.

The complaint goes beyond the events of the last week, when NYPD arrested more than 100 protesting students. It alleged that for the past months, "Palestinian students, Arabs, Muslims, students perceived to be Palestinian, and students associated with or advocating for Palestinians" were subject to anti-Arab and anti-Palestinian harassment and Islamophobia.

The complaint represents four students and Columbia's Students for Justice in Palestine. Palestine Legal said these students received death threats and were "harassed for wearing keffiyehs or hijab, doxed, stereotyped, being treated differently by high-ranking administrators including Columbia University President Minouche Shafik."

Palestine Legal also said the school has the responsibility to protect its students, including Palestinians and supporters, and should not threaten or call the police or military. Columbia has denied threats to call the National Guard were ever on the table in negotiations with protesters.

"Since October 7th alone, the organization has received reports of over 1,800 incidents, over five times the number we received in all of 2022, reflecting an exponential rise in anti-Palestinian repression across the US," Palestine Legal said in a press release.

Rallies for Israel and against antisemitism will take place at two universities Thursday night.

Near Emory, a "Passover gathering" will be held at a local Israeli-owned bakery near campus to show that Atlanta is "strong and will not be deterred by antisemitism," according to an image being circulated around local groups on social media.

According to the Columbia Jewish Alumni Association, there will be a "United for Israel march" outside the university later Thursday. The rally point is outside the gates of the school. The group's X account called it a "unity march of Christians and Jews."

The University of Southern California canceled its main commencement ceremony for 2024 graduating students in May, citing "new safety measures in place."

"We understand that this is disappointing," the university said in an announcement on its website.

The announcement came days after the university canceled the commencement speech of its Muslim valedictorian, Asna Tabassum, due to what it called security concerns. USC then canceled appearances by prominent speakers and honorees at the May 10 graduation ceremony.

USC's commencement weekend is scheduled for May 8-11. Its main stage ceremony traditionally brought all 65,000 students and their families together. The university said it would host "new activities and celebrations" to ensure the weekend would still be "meaningful, memorable and uniquely USC."

Many students in the class of 2024 graduated high school in 2020, meaning they may also have missed out on graduation ceremonies due to Covid-19.

George Washington University president Ellen M. Granberg on Thursday said DC Metropolitan Police were asked to assist in relocating an “unauthorized protest encampment” on campus.

“The encampment, unlike some demonstrations in the past, is an unauthorized use of university space at this location and violated several university policies,” Granberg said in a statement. “The decision to request MPD assistance came after multiple instructions made by GWPD to relocate to an alternative demonstration site on campus went unheeded by encampment participants."

She said the school will allow George Washington University students “an appropriate place for their protest within the defined limits of free expression” at the school but will not allow students from “other local colleges or unaffiliated individuals to trespass on our campus.”

“We can and will enforce the time, place, and manner restrictions that continue to govern activities on our campus,” she said. 

Granberg also said they will insist that protesters “meet their responsibility to university policies that prohibit the disruption of the normal academic activities of our community – the vast majority of whom are not protesting.”

“Occupying campus grounds, establishing outdoor encampments, and blocking access to buildings create safety concerns and can disrupt learning and study, especially during this critical final exam period,” she said. “Such activities are inconsistent with the university’s mission, values, and commitment to providing a safe environment for all students and employees.”

A State Department spokesperson said Thursday that the Biden administration supports the right to protest peacefully.

When asked if the protesters' voices were reaching Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Patel said, “Absolutely.”

Patel added that “harmful rhetoric, rhetoric whether it be rooted in antisemitism, Islamophobia, is incredibly problematic and needs to be condemned and called out.”

Gerald A. Griggs, head of the Georgia NAACP, on Thursday called for a meeting with Emory president Gregory L. Fenves, after pepper spray and pepper balls were used by police on protesters on campus.

“As the president of the @GeorgiaNAACP, given the events that occurred this morning on the campus of @EmoryUniversity & @emorycollege, I am requesting a meeting with the President of the University to discuss the events on the campus as soon as possible,” wrote Griggs, who is also an alumnus of the university, on social media.

An encampment has been formed at Northeastern University in Boston, where dozens of protesters can be seen forming a human chain around several tents. 

Uniformed members of the Northeastern University Police Department and the Boston Police Department are present at what appears to be a peaceful protest.

Students can be heard chanting several protest chants, including "Who do you protect, who do you serve?" "Viva, viva Palestine," and "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” Some law enforcement on site are wearing helmets and carrying zip ties.

Several apparent students wearing yarmulkes are in a crowd watching the protesters.