Hundreds of people set up an encampment Thursday on Deering Meadow on Northwestern University’s Evanston campus as a show of support for Palestinian people living in Gaza, to protest what they call censorship from the university, and call on the institution to divest from Israel.

The demonstration comes as similar student protests have sprung up at campuses across the nation in recent days, including Columbia University in New York, Emerson College in Boston and the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. Some universities have called in police to break up demonstrations, resulting in scuffles between students, faculty and police.

A news release from NU Educators for Justice in Palestine, Student Liberation Union and Jewish Voice for Peace said the camp is meant to be “a safe space for those who want to show their support of the Palestinian people.”

“Northwestern students report the administration is curtailing free speech,” the statement said. “The school is intimidating both students and educators who speak out against Israeli apartheid and occupation. The student liberation encampment will create a safe space for those who want to show their support of the Palestinian people.”

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In a statement Thursday morning, university spokesman Jon Yates said, “Northwestern is committed to the principles of freedom of expression and peaceful assembly — and to protecting the safety of all members of our community, as well as limiting disruptions to university operations.”

I’m at Deering Meadow where about 100 student and faculty protesters have linked arms to protect their encampment from police. They have been here since 7 a.m. and police have been threatening arrests since about 7:30. pic.twitter.com/PP0K22IK7O

— Isabel Funk (@isabeldfunk) April 25, 2024

The Northwestern student code of conduct was updated to prohibit tents

University President Michael Schill sent a letter to students Thursday morning saying the university had enacted an “interim addendum” to the student code of conduct to prohibit tents. The letter said that protesters had been informed they were in violation of university policies and that the university was removing tents that protesters didn’t take down.

“The goal of this addendum is to balance the right to peacefully demonstrate with our goal to protect our community, to avoid disruptions to instruction and to ensure University operations can continue unabated,” Schilling said.

“Any violation of the rules contained in this document or in our policies could lead to disciplinary actions such as suspension or expulsion, and possibly criminal sanctions,” he said.

A statement signed by over 100 faculty members and shared by Northwestern chapters of Educators for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace on Instagram demanded the university allow the student protests to proceed.

“We, the undersigned Northwestern faculty of different backgrounds and political viewpoints, come together in support of these principles and in the firm belief that the university will violate its own commitments if it were to take any action to block our students’ rights to peaceful speech, assembly and dissent,” the statement said.

Around 8:30 a.m., campus police made a final announcement calling for tents to be taken down before arrests and citations would be issued. Protesters were on the meadow chanting and drumming, with some holding up signs facing the street saying “Divest from death, invest in life” and “NU = hedge fund.” One faculty member yelled, “You will not touch our students.” Students shouted, “The more you try to silence us the louder we will get.”

When police told the protesters to roll up or remove the tents, protesters chose not to comply, instead forming a human chain to prevent police from shoving their way through to the encampment.

“They then moved forward, ripping up and destroying all of our tents and throwing them away,” Eden M., a grad student and protester, said.

By 8 p.m. there was no police presence and the crowd had grown to over 200 people. Several tents remained as students planned to stay overnight. There were tents with a first aid station, as well as one with food and drinks.

About 9 p.m. organizers said they had met with the president and provost to negotiate but were unsuccessful. Upon realizing they were not making progress, the protest leaders asked about arrests and were told they would receive two warnings before arrests began and that they could start by 11 p.m.

‘I wanted to put my body on the line’

Students and faculty at the protest said they felt a duty to speak out for people in Gaza.

“Once we heard that they were going to be doing this encampment, we wanted to be here as a presence to help protect them and support them,” said Steven Thrasher, an assistant professor at Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism.

Protesters organized around a color-based system to indicate their willingness to interact with the police. Choosing red meant a protester was prepared to risk arrest, yellow meant they’d move depending on if situations escalated, and green meant they’d stay on the fringes.

“If we’re willing to be a level of red, we’re willing to be arrested,” Thrasher said. “And I’m a level red.”

“I was horrified seeing students [around the country] be assaulted by cops,” he added. “So I wanted to put my body on the line before they could touch our students”

“We want everyone to be safe and comfortable, but I think a lot of us are here because we know that there are a lot of people in Gaza who are struggling or don’t have any food or water,” Mayan, an undergraduate student and member of Jewish Voices for Peace, said. “The people that are here are willing to put ourselves on the line despite those worries.”

“We have a very strong contingent of Jewish representation here,” Eden, who didn’t share her last name for privacy reasons, said. “Although we are centering the Palestinian cause, this is not a coalition that is exclusive to anyone in any specific race or religion, or ethnicity, or nationality.”

‘There needs to be severe repercussions.’

About a half-dozen counter protesters gathered across the street from the protest at one point in the morning for about an hour. A protester stole an Israeli flag from one of them and took it back to the encampment.

“I am not walking in amongst them, I’m not provoking them any way, I’m across the street, standing for what I believe in, because the Constitution guarantees me the right to do so,” John Brinkmann, an Evanston resident not affiliated with the university, said. “For one of the persons involved in this group to steal from me is unfortunate. I’m hoping that we all can continue to express our opinions and points of view in a peaceful manner.”

Police asked a student negotiator to return the flag. It was not returned. Brinkmann said he would be filing a police report.

Matthew Weiss, a senior at Northwestern, said he and the other counter-protesters showed up because of the “egregious” demonstration, adding that he was harassed on his way to the protest while carrying an Israeli flag and wearing a kippah.

“The atmosphere around Israel at this campus is disgusting,” Weiss, 21, said. “I think it’s frankly embarrassing that Schill was unable to get rid of this in the morning, because the tents are still here, the people are still here. There needs to be some severe repercussions.”

Northwestern Hillel executive director Michael Simon expressed concern about some of the rhetoric used at the protest, which he characterized as antisemitic. He emphasized the need to balance free speech with a safe, inclusive campus environment.

“We want people to express their opinions in an open and free way. But we also really want the University to be a place that’s free of people feeling harassment or intimidation or threats, and I think there’s just concern that the protests could go in that direction,” he said.

U.S. universities have called in police to break up demonstrations

In response to the protests across the country, some U.S. universities have called in police to break up pro-Palestinian demonstrations, resulting in ugly scuffles and dozens of arrests. Others appeared content to wait out student protests Thursday, as the final days of the semester ticked down and graduation ceremonies neared.

At Emerson College in Boston, 108 people were arrested at an encampment overnight, and four police officers suffered injuries that were not life-threatening, Boston police said.

At Columbia University in New York, students defiantly erected an encampment where many are set to graduate in front of families in just a few weeks. Columbia continued to negotiate with students after several failed attempts — and more than 100 arrests — to clear the encampment.

The University of Southern California canceled its main stage graduation ceremony Thursday, a day after more than 90 protesters were arrested on campus, one for alleged assault with a deadly weapon. Tensions were already high after the university canceled a planned commencement speech by the school’s pro-Palestinian valedictorian, citing safety concerns.

Contributing: Audrey Hettleman, The Associated Press