College is a time of finding oneself and your values. Students across the country are learning and growing by pushing the boundaries of free speech. University protests are taking place all across the United States. These protesters are protesting specifically university investment in corporations and schools that are involved in the Israel-Palistein war. These young adults across the United States are chanting for divestment. They have been ramping up since the start of these protests about a month ago. Many protests in these prominent colleges – including most prominent Columbia University and UCLA – have set up and been living in encampments on high traffic areas of campus.
It has been a month of colleges being put under pressure to divest. College admin around the country aren’t allowing themselves to fall to this pressure, they are making their stance. However, some college administrators have made history by compromising with these student protesters. In particular, on April 30th, Brown University reached a deal with the student protesters. This was an approach that hasn’t really been seen so far: negotiation. These students were offered a seat at the table in an upcoming meeting with the Corporation of Brown university in exchange for dismantling their encampment.
As a community, as a country we have seen gear clad police crack down on arresting students protesters and suspensions being handed out by college admin. However, these violent approaches have not gotten most of these colleges their desired outcome. While the police groups have been able to break up many of these student encampments and arrest many of the protesters, it has not put out the fire that is these student protests, it has only added oil to the flame. For example, following arrests and suspensions at Columbia university, the students left the encampment in favor of Hamilton Hall, hoping to escalate the situation to force Columbia Administration’s hand. However, they also did not get their desired approach Tuesday Morning, as it was almost immediately broken up by police and arrests were made, 30% being of outsiders not affiliated with the university.
Other colleges are taking a more neutral approach, like Northeastern University. While their counterparts are making deals and arrests, Northeastern is allowing the students to protest as long as they remain peaceful, even though it goes directly against college rules. These students are testing the bounds of students rights of free speech. However, they are doing this illegally. To legally protest in the way these students are in the United States you need to obtain a permit. To protest in a way that disrupts traffic or daily activity you need to obtain a permit. Without this permit you are unlawfully protesting. Seeing these approaches College’s across the country are taking, it leads one to wonder: What is the best approach for colleges to handle unlawful student protests?