The wave of anti-Israel protests on college campuses across the United States continued this weekend, with two demonstrations briefly interrupting graduation ceremonies at the University of Michigan.
Dozens of protesters wearing keffiyehs and graduation caps waved Palestinian flags and marched down the aisle toward the Michigan Stadium stage during Saturday morning’s opening ceremony, CBS News reported.
As a speaker invited the crowd to join in the school’s “Go Blue” chant, protesters responded by shouting, “Regents, regents, you can’t hide!” You are financing genocide,” according to the New York Times.
A plane bearing the messages “Divest from Israel now!” Free Palestine!” flew over the stadium, while a counter-protest plane held a banner reading: “We stand with Israel. Jewish lives matter” was also ignored, CBS reported News.
“You’re ruining our graduation,” someone in the audience was heard retorting as school police forced protesters to move to the back of the room, according to the Times.
Some pro-Israel demonstrators seated in private boxes hung Israeli flags from their stands, the media outlet said.
The graduation protest took place the day after a group of protesters marched through the commencement ceremony of the University of Michigan’s School of Music, Theater and Dance with Palestinian flags and signs stating “Genocide financed by the UM”. according to a video shared by journalist Thad Green.
The hecklers were greeted with a mix of cheers and boos — with at least one person shouting, “Get out, get out,” the video shows.
“The protest lasted a few minutes before the police arrived and the protesters left,” Green wrote on X.
A person unaffiliated with the university was arrested outside the school’s Art Museum, where a protest gathered near a dinner for honorary degree recipients, the New York Times reported.
The disruptions at the University of Michigan may have been a wake-up call to other universities that would welcome graduate students this weekend, the New York Times said.
At Northeastern University in Boston — where 98 people were recently arrested in connection with campus protests — officials are adhering to strict rules about who can attend the Sunday afternoon ceremony at Fenway Park, the Journal reported. media.
Many restrictions, however, were already in place before the wave of anti-Israel protests that occupied campuses last month.
Before the school event, graduates from the university’s College of Arts, Media and Design held up messages saying: “NEU funds genocide. Divest now! » in front of the camera after receiving their diplomas, according to a video from Quds News Network.
Ohio State University and Indiana University Bloomington are also expected to hold all-school graduation ceremonies there this weekend.
Concerns about possible disruptions to college graduations are particularly high after the University of Southern California canceled its main commencement ceremony due to security concerns.
Clashes between demonstrators and police are increasing: on Saturday, the anti-Israel encampment at the University of Virginia was raided by state police who were filmed dragging tents and demonstrators out of their locations on the campus lawn.
Around 1 p.m., at least one demonstrator had been arrested, according to journalist and UVA graduate student Olivia Paschal.
“Cops rushed into a line of students and faculty in waves of 4 or 5 at a time,” Paschal wrote alongside photos of the scene.
A photo shared by Paschal showed a uniformed officer with what appeared to be a number of zip ties on hand.
The police response, however, apparently prompted some spectators to run and join the demonstrators, Thomas Baxter, editor of the Daily Cavalier, wrote about.
New York Post
