On May 1, 21 students, faculty and community members were arrested at the University of Texas at Dallas’ Gaza Liberation Plaza encampment. The UTD protest was held in the wake of many other pro-Palestinian campus protests across the U.S.
The nine people in question have gone through meetings with UTD’s Office of Community Standards and Conduct to discuss their options regarding punishment. They were given three options, according to the speakers at the press conference. They can accept responsibility and a punishment to be determined later, accept responsibility and appeal any further punishment or they can dispute both.
In the latter case, the individuals involved would proceed to a hearing on their charges. They're not yet sure what the full extent of their punishment will be, but say deferred suspension and denying degrees was on the table at one point. Deferred suspension means the punishment will be postponed but automatically applied if the student or organization is found responsible for any other rule violations.
The university said in a statement that it couldn't comment on student or faculty disciplinary proceedings. However, the school said students were arrested for criminal trespass, not protesting, and that demonstrations have been held on campus before and after May 1 without incident.
"Individuals may peacefully assemble in the common outdoor areas of campus and exercise their right to freedom of speech, but individuals may not erect or maintain an encampment," the university statement said.
The college recommends the nine accept the sanctions against them, the protesters said, but they’re not having it. They have chosen to dispute the charges and are asking the university for full amnesty and to drop all sanctions against them. The disciplinary charges are on top of the pending criminal trespass charges against those arrested and have prevented the students from stepping foot on campus this summer.
As for the other 12 of the 21 arrests made in May, three were faculty and the rest were either alumni or community members. The university's student code of conduct doesn't apply to the alumni or faculty, but they still face criminal trespass charges.
The students’ disciplinary hearings began days after Israel launched another attack that struck the southern and central Gaza Strip. Just before that, a weekend strike killed scores of Palestinians who had sought shelter in a makeshift camp, according to Reuters.“It sets an awful precedent.” – Dan Sullivan, attorney
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Some of the bombs sent to Israel were made by General Dynamics in Garland. The University of Texas/Texas A&M Investment Management Company invests millions of dollars in weapons manufacturers, including General Dynamics, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing and Northrop Grumman. The investment management company didn't respond to a request for comment. However, Kevin Eltife, chairman of UT's board of regents, said at a meeting just days after the arrests that divestment would not happen.
These investments are what the students, faculty and community members involved in the protests have been fighting against.
The group’s attorney, Dan Sullivan, believes the whole situation with the arrests and university’s actions is ridiculous. “I think it’s garbage. It’s terrible,” he said. “It sets an awful precedent.” He said what UTD is doing is part of a campaign of repression, but he doesn’t think the criminal charges will stick. “Many of these arrests have already been found to be illegal by courts,” he said.
Whether the charges stick or not, the students and recent graduates will keep fighting.
Mousa Najjar was one of the arrested students. He also held up a Palestinian flag during his graduation ceremony and said he was escorted off campus as a result. He was told he’d be arrested on the spot if he didn’t leave. Now, Najjar is worried the college will withhold his degree.
“For years, our own administration has continuously demonstrated absolutely no intent to protect its own students, let alone heed their demands,” Najjar said.
Since campus organizations like Students for Justice in Palestine started calling on the university to divest from weapons manufacturers, they’ve been met with complete disregard, Najjar added.
“Rather than working with the students to address our concerns regarding the university’s investments in these companies that are killing our own families," he said, "our administration instead chose to publicly denounce student demands.”
Najjar also said that Instead of listening to the students, the college suggested mental health resources for them.
“We don’t need mental health resources,” he said during the press conference. “We need divestment from these companies killing our own people.”
Mariam Lafi, also arrested in May 1, believes the university has two options: divest from weapons manufacturers or “continue to profit off the genocide against the Palestinian people.” She said Students for Justice in Palestine, of which she is a member, has been advocating for divestment for years to no avail.
“Our calls have been outright ignored,” she said. “Now, ignoring us is no longer an option, as hundreds of thousands of students have organized globally to demand divestment and fight for the Liberation of Palestine.”
The students may not be able to persuade these corporations to stop making weapons, but their aim is closer to home.
“But, we can and we must target the institutions and bodies that invest in them," Lafi said. "Like our universities.”
