‘Free Palestine’ encampment set up on UC Berkeley campus in solidarity with students arrested

BERKELEY, Calif. (KGO) — As finals are only two weeks away, some UC Berkeley students are trading in the library for tents.

With their laptops in hand, more than a dozen students are camping in tents outside of Sproul Hall in solidarity with students at other universities across the U.S.

It’s what demonstrators are calling a “Free Palestine encampment.”

“UC needs to end its silence on the genocide in Gaza, it needs to divest both its direct and indirect investments from weapons companies that are facilitating this genocide,” Matt Kovac, a spokesperson of the group called ‘UC Berkeley Divest’ said.

Organizers say the group has three demands.

First, they want UC Berkeley to end what they’re calling the university’s “silence in the Palestinian genocide in Gaza.”

They’re also calling on the university to divest from corporations involved with the Israel-Hamas conflict.

And lastly, they are asking for better protection for Palestinian, Arab, and Muslim students.

“This issue is often miscommunicated as a sort of campus culture war that pits student against student on the basis of identity and that couldn’t be further from the truth,” Matt Kovac with UC Berkeley Divest says. “This is a movement rooted in solidarity and anti-racism and anti-imperialism because that’s what we’re witnessing in Gaza.”

UC Berkeley released a statement about how it will handle the tents in front of Sproul Hall, saying: “We will take the steps necessary to ensure the protest does not disrupt the university’s operations. There are no plans to change the university’s investment policies and practices.”

UC Berkeley law student Malak Afaneh, who went viral for protesting at a dean’s party, wants a refocus on Gaza and the school’s aid to Israel.

While things remain peaceful in Berkeley, it’s a much different story at Cal Poly Humboldt, as pro-Palestinian protesters barricade themselves inside a building.

The university is calling it a “dangerous and volatile situation,” closing campus at least through Tuesday.

“The key to all of these places, it needs to stay safe, it needs to stay respectful, hopefully we can have this dialogue,” O’Rourke said.

O’Rourke stopped by to check on the students just waking up on his way to class Tuesday.

“Our goal of the university is to kind of challenge what we think and to learn and so I really have been impressed with students across the country standing up to these issues, asking their administrations to be more transparent and then to engage in these issues,” he said.

The protesters say they have no plans to leave until their demands are met.

The Bay Area’s Jewish Community Relations Council posted to X, saying in part: “While their words are abhorrent, the protesters at UC Berkeley have a right to free speech and assembly, and no violence or obstruction has yet been reported.”

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About the Author

Yosi Yahoudai is a founder and the managing partner of J&Y. His practice is comprised primarily of cases involving automobile and motorcycle accidents, but he also represents people in premises liability lawsuits, including suits alleging dangerous conditions of public property, third-party criminal conduct, and intentional torts. He also has expertise in cases involving product defects, dog bites, elder abuse, and sexual assault. He earned his Bachelor of Arts from the University of California and is admitted to practice in all California State Courts, and the United States District Court for the Southern District of California. If you have any questions about this article, you can contact Yosi by clicking here.

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