April 29, 2024 - Columbia begins suspending student protesters
By Elizabeth Wolfe, Samantha Delouya, Eva Rothenberg, Aditi Sangal and Amir Vera, CNN
Updated 2218 GMT (0618 HKT) April 30, 2024
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5:49 a.m. ET, April 29, 2024
Situation at Virginia Tech has “stabilized,” university says
From CNN’s Paradise Afshar
Students at Virginia Tech take part in pro-Palestinian protests on April 28. WSET
Virginia Tech said Monday morning things had “stabilized” at the university’s campus after police activity overnight.
But police remain on campus, it said.
“Incident at Graduate Life Center has stabilized,” the university said in a social media post. “Police presence remains. Urgent, avoid area. No further updates unless situation changes.”
The Washington Post earlier reported that arrests had been made on campus as police worked to remove protesters from an encampment, citing an unnamed university spokesperson.
At about 10:15 p.m. Sunday, Virginia Tech police advised demonstrators to leave within five minutes or face arrest.
CNN has asked the university for details about the number of students who were taken into custody and their charges.
Demonstrators began to occupy the lawn at the university’s Graduate Life Center on Friday, according to the university. By Sunday, the situation on campus had “progressed” and had the potential to “become unsafe,” it said.
4:50 a.m. ET, April 29, 2024
Arrests made on Virginia Tech campus, Washington Post reports
From CNN’s Paradise Afshar
Arrests were made on Virginia Tech's campus as police worked to remove protesters from an encampment, according to The Washington Post.
The newspaper cited an unnamed spokesperson with the university.
At about 10:15 p.m. Sunday, Virginia Tech police advised demonstrators to leave within five minutes or face arrest.
Around the same time, the university warned students to avoid the protest site.
“Heavy police activity around Graduate Life Center. Urgent. Please avoid the area. Call 911 for help,” the university posted on social media.
CNN has asked the university for details about the number of students who were taken into custody and their charges.
Demonstrators began to occupy the lawn at the university’s Graduate Life Center on Friday, according to the university. By Sunday, the situation on campus had “progressed” and had the potential to “become unsafe,” it said.
3:44 a.m. ET, April 29, 2024
Student protesters have a history of pushing for Columbia University to divest
From CNN's Clare Duffy and Ramishah Maruf
A student secures a Palestinian flag near a protest encampment on the main campus of Columbia University in New York City on April 27. Caitlin Ochs/Reuters
A core demand over the past week by the pro-Palestinian student groups at Columbia University has been for the school to withdraw investment funds from what they describe as companies profiting from Israel’s war in Gaza.
Columbia’s endowment is worth $13.6 billion and is managed by a university-owned investment firm.
The request from a coalition of student groups behind the movement includes divesting endowment funds from several weapons manufacturers and tech companies that do business with Israel’s government.
The group has described those companies as profiting “from Israeli apartheid, genocide, and military occupation of Palestine.” Israel denies accusations of genocide.
This is not the first time such demands have been made.
In 2000, the university established an advisory committee on socially responsible investing, made up of students, faculty and alumni, to provide feedback to the managers of its endowment investments.
Columbia now lists five areas where it refrains from investing: tobacco, private prison operations, thermal coal, Sudan and fossil fuels — all decisions made in the past decade.
Columbia was also the first Ivy League university to divest from South Africa, and various other colleges followed suit.
In 2015, Columbia became the first US university to divest from private prison companies after a student campaign raising concerns about human rights abuses.
A fossil fuel divestment proposal was approved by Columbia’s Board of Trustees in early 2021. The policy includes a commitment not to invest in “companies whose primary business is the exploration and production of fossil fuels.” Columbia’s announcement was followed by similar commitments at other Ivy League universities.
Protests over the war in Gaza are sweeping US universities. Here's the latest
CNN Staff
Pro-Palestinian protesters are disrupting major US colleges and universities, bringing mounting pressure on school administrators to address the demonstrations as their campuses prepare for graduation celebrations.
Though protesters broadly insist their tactics are peaceful, administrators often have decried their demonstrations as disruptive, and some are employing school rules governing the use of public spaces to enact discipline or call for police backup.
A central demand of many protests is that universities divest their funds from Israel-linked companies that say are profiting from the war in Gaza.
Here's what happened over the weekend:
Campuses gripped by arrests and unrest
Protests at the University of California Los Angeles crescendoed into screams and scuffles at times on Sunday as demonstrators breached a security barrier intended to separate opposing protest groups. The university said it is "heartbroken" over the physical confrontations.
At Washington University, more than 80 people were arrested at the campus Saturday, the university said. Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein was among those detained.
About 100 people were arrested on Northeastern University's campus in Boston on Saturday morning as authorities broke up an unauthorized encampment. Student organizers are disputing some of the school's claims about the encampment.
At Arizona State University, police arrested 72 people in connection to an encampment on campus, university officials said.
The number of demonstrators on George Washington University's campus is dwindling, but another group has erected an encampment of about 20 tents on a nearby public street.
Lawmakers and administrators weigh in
Portland State University said it will pause receiving gifts and grants from the Boeing Company — which has ties to Israel — until the college holds a forum to debate the ethics of doing so. The school's president cited the demands of students and faculty in their decision to pause funds.
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanderspushed back on claims from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and several US lawmakers that the protests are driven by antisemitism, telling CNN’s Dan Bash that it’s not antisemitic to hold the Israeli government accountable for its actions in Gaza, where more than 34,000 people have been killed.
2:37 a.m. ET, April 29, 2024
Cal Poly Humboldt urges students occupying buildings to “leave campus peacefully now”
From CNN’s Paradise Afshar
Pro-Palestinian protesters stand off with police on the campus of California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt, in Arcata, California, on April 22. Andrew Goff/Lost Coast Outpost/AP/File
California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt, is asking students participating in demonstrations and the occupation of at least two buildings to “leave campus peacefully.”
“The individuals who are occupying Siemens Hall and Nelson Hall East, or illegally camping around those facilities, are urged to leave the campus peacefully now,” the university said in a release Sunday night.
The request comes a day after the university announced it had closed its campus and moved to remote classes and exams until the end of the semester due to the protests.
Administrators have accused protesters of trying to break into locked buildings "with the intention of either locking themselves in, vandalizing, or stealing equipment.”
If demonstrators leave campus voluntarily, the university said it may consider the choice as a “possible mitigating factor” during conduct proceedings and when deciding what discipline students will face.
“This does not, however, eliminate responsibility for any potential conduct or criminal charges,” the university said.
1:37 a.m. ET, April 29, 2024
Virginia Tech officers tell pro-Palestinian protesters to leave or face arrest
From CNN’s Paradise Afshar
Virginia Tech police have warned pro-Palestinian protesters on campus they will face arrest if they refuse to disperse.
At about 10:15 p.m. on Sunday, university police advised demonstrators to leave within five minutes or be subject to arrest.
Around the same time, the university warned students to avoid the protest site.
“Heavy police activity around Graduate Life Center. Urgent. Please avoid the area. Call 911 for help,” the university posted on social media.
Earlier on Sunday, officers had worked to remove demonstrators from an on-campus encampment.
Demonstrators began to occupy the lawn at the university’s Graduate Life Center on Friday, the university said.
“Through constant dialogue between university officials, the Virginia Tech Police Department, and protest organizers, we were able to maintain a safe and peaceful environment through much of the weekend,” the university said.
By Sunday, the university said the situation on campus had “progressed” and had the potential to “become unsafe.”
1:55 a.m. ET, April 29, 2024
What is divestment? And does it work?
From CNN's Nicole Goodkind
As Pro-Palestinian protests continue to sweep major US universities, a unifying message has emerged.
At multiple schools, the same chant can be heard: “Disclose! Divest! We will not stop, we will not rest!”
What it means: Divestment involves an investor or institution selling off shares of a company to avoid complicity in activities they deem unethical or harmful.
That action is intended not only to reallocate funds to more ethical investments but also to make a public statement that can pressure a company or government to change policies.
Critics argue that while divestment can be an effective expression of disapproval and a call for change, its actual impact on corporate behavior and market trends is more tenuous.
Stock prices remain steady: Research finds that there’s very little correlation between divestment campaigns and stock value or company behavior, Witold Henisz at the University of Pennsylvania told CNN.
When you sell shares, said Henisz, you give someone who cares less about the issue voice and you give up your own voice.
Divesting may feel good, he said, “but it may have perverse outcomes.”
Proponents of divestment counter that its value lies in raising awareness and stigmatizing partnerships with targeted regimes or industries.
Detangling interests: University investments are much more complicated now than they were in the 1980s. Many endowments are managed by asset managers and invested in opaque private equity funds.
About 20 protesters remain at George Washington University as street encampment grows
From CNN’s Phillip Wang and Avery Lotz
People set up more tents along H street as they protest at George Washington University in Washington, DC, on April 28. Kent Nishimura/Getty Images
The number of demonstrators on George Washington University's campus had reduced to about 20 people by Sunday night, but another group erected an encampment of about 20 tents on a nearby public street over the weekend, the school said.
As an encampment grew on campus over the past few days, the university's administration decided students who remained there after being asked to leave would be temporarily suspended and "administratively barred" from school grounds.
"On Friday evening, April 26, demonstrators barred from University Yard established a second encampment in the middle of H Street, beyond the barriers securing GW property. "Currently, we are aware of approximately 20 tents erected in the street by individuals from across the region. This demonstration is on public property and under the jurisdiction of the DC government," the university said.
The university said there had been no incidents of violence during on-campus demonstrations, though it added, “the actions of some protesters have been highly offensive to many members of our community.”
No further details on the alleged actions were provided.
People sit to listen as activists and students protest near an encampment at University Yard, George Washington University on April 28, in Washington, DC. Kent Nishimura/Getty Images
Earlier on Sunday, a crowd of demonstrators chanted “Free Palestine” to the beat of a drum on H Street NW, some of them wearing keffiyeh and waving Palestinian flags. The street was blocked by law enforcement, and a number of DC Metropolitan Police officers were in the area.
Flags, signs and sidewalk chalk decorated the encampment, where protesters said they would stay until the university fulfills their demands, which include disclosing its financial endowments and divesting from Israeli associations — similar to the message of many other college protests nationwide.
One counter-protester walked through the crowd with an Israeli flag draped around her shoulders. Demonstrators chanted, “Free, free, free Palestine,” at the protester, while one held a sign that read, “Genocide is bad.”
1:36 a.m. ET, April 29, 2024
RFK Jr. defends protester rights but opposes calls for Gaza ceasefire
From CNN's Aaron Pellish
Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks during a campaign event in Oakland, California, on March 26. Josh Edelson/AFP/Getty Images/File
Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr Kennedy told reporters following a campaign rally in Holbrook, New York on Sunday that he supported the rights of pro-Palestinian protesters on college campuses but disagreed with their calls for a ceasefire in Gaza.
“First of all, you know, I support free speech. I think speech, even when speech is appalling to me, when it's reprehensible, when it makes no sense, people ought to be able to say, ought to be able to voice their concerns,” Kennedy said.
But, he said he doesn’t “understand… what the rationale is” behind calls for a ceasefire in Gaza, though he labeled himself as “very pro-Palestinian.”
“I don't see how people want to have a negotiation,” Kennedy said. “Every ceasefire has been used by Hamas to rearm, to regroup, to raise the banner and do another surprise attack on Israel."
Israeli attacks in Gaza have killed more than 34,000 Palestinians since the start of the war, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. CNN cannot independently confirm the numbers due to the lack of international media access to Gaza.
Kennedy also called antisemitic threats against Jewish students on campuses “unacceptable” and urged universities to protect Jewish students.
“If they're going to protect people who are non-white from abuse because it makes them feel unsafe, they need to do that with Jewish students, too,” he said.
