(C) Wisconsin Watch This story was originally published by Wisconsin Watch and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Police remove tents, arrest protesters at UW-Madison’s pro-Palestinian encampment [1] ['Wpr Staff'] Date: 2024-05-01 13:12:57+00:00 Students protesters at the University of Wisconsin-Madison clashed with police Wednesday after officers cleared out a pro-Palestinian encampment just two days after the student protest began. University police gave demonstrators staying at the encampment a warning to evacuate shortly before 7 a.m. By 9 a.m., all but two tents had been removed and UW-Madison Police had left the area. Protesters gather following multiple arrests at the pro-Palestinian encampment on the UW-Madison campus on May 1, 2024. Angela Major/WPR Stay informed on the latest news Sign up for WPR’s email newsletter. Email Email This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. State and local representatives were at the pro-Palestinian encampment on the UW-Madison campus as police arrested protesters on May 1, 2024. Angela Major/WPR UW-Madison Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin said in a statement about 30 protesters were cited and a dozen were arrested after resisting police action. “Every individual was given the opportunity to move away from the tent area and continue peaceful protest,” Mnookin wrote. “I cannot emphasize strongly enough our support for free expression and peaceful protest. Now that the illegal activity has been resolved, students and others are free to resume peaceful protest that abides by campus protest guidelines today or at any time in the future.” But two hours later, protesters began setting up a new encampment with at least 15 tents. Leaders of the demonstration held trainings on how to resist further arrests and made plans for a march and rally for Wednesday afternoon. Protesters move tents to be closer to remaining supplies on Wednesday, May 1, 2024. Two tents were defended from the previous camp area, including this one. Angela Major/WPR Professors arrested, demonstrators and police report injuries While the demonstrations Wednesday morning remained largely peaceful, at least two protesters were injured, according to the ACLU of Wisconsin. UW-Madison Professor Samer Alatout, who is Palestinian and an advisor to Students for Justice in Palestine, was pinned to the ground by police. He said he was “targeted by police for violence.” “They pushed me into the ground,” Alatout told reporters. “They pushed me again and again and again.” He had a gash on his head, which he said came from being hit with a police shield several times. A video posted to social media appeared to show him pushing against police officers’ shields before the arrest. UW-Madison Professor Samer Alatout, who is Palestinian and an advisor to Students for Justice in Palestine, was pinned to the ground by police. He told reporters he was “targeted by police for violence.” Angela Major/WPR A pro-Palestinian protester confronts police as they begin taking down tents at the encampment set up on the UW-Madison campus on May 1, 2024. Angela Major/WPR In response, the ACLU of Wisconsin released a statement condemning the violence. “Responding to peaceful acts of dissent with militarized police is dangerous and only makes things worse. Too often in situations like this, we’ve seen police behave recklessly, violate the law, and endanger people gathered at protests and acts of civil disobedience,” executive director Melinda Brennan said. Student protestor Mia Kurzer said the actions of police were uncalled for. “We’re here for peace,” said Kurzer, who is Jewish and was wearing a small beaded Star of David necklace. “This is a government-funded institution, which we pay for. And it’s a public university. So I don’t understand why they can say we can’t be on public property that’s outside. We’re not blocking anything. We’re not disrupting people.” Four police officers, including three Dane County deputies and one State Trooper, were also injured, according to UW-Madison Police. While police removed tents and detained protesters who refused to leave, some demonstrators were handcuffed and taken away from the encampment. UW-Madison professor Sami Schalk was escorted by two officers as students shouted, “They’re arresting professors.” Police escort UW-Madison professor Sami Schalk after she was arrested at the pro-Palestinian encampment on campus on May 1, 2024. Angela Major/WPR During a press conference after the encampment had been cleared, UW-Madison Police spokesperson Marc Lovicott said demonstrators are welcome on Library Mall as long they are not camping. “They were illegally camping and using camping equipment here on campus. That’s the main reason why we were here today and what we enforced,” he told reporters. “We’re welcoming protesters and we’ve welcomed protesters here all along. You can’t camp here though.” UW-Madison Dean of Students Christina Olstad tried to engage with students at around 9:30 a.m., but as she approached the demonstration, she was quickly chased off by protesters. They said she “didn’t protect students.” Students confront UW-Madison Dean of Students Christina Olstad after police arrested multiple protesters and took down tents at the pro-Palestinian encampment on the UW-Madison campus on May 1, 2024. Angela Major/WPR Protests part of nationwide campus movement against Israel-Hamas war The protest at UW-Madison, and a similar one at UW-Milwaukee, began on Monday. It came two weeks after students at Columbia University established the first such encampment. The scene at UW-Milwaukee was calm Wednesday morning. A spokesperson for the university said they were aware of what was happening in Madison. “At this time, UWM Police will continue to monitor the encampment on the lawn south of Mitchell Hall,” the statement said. “UWM’s first priority is the safety and well-being of our students, employees and visitors. Members of the UWM administration are having conversations with students and community members in the background and are working on peaceful resolutions.” Pro-Palestinian protesters sit near the police line at the encampment on the UW-Madison campus on May 1, 2024. Angela Major/WPR Similar movements have spread to campuses across the country. They are a protest against the Israel-Hamas war, and a demand that university administrations divest from Israeli companies, programs and causes. Throughout the two days of UW protest, administrations on both campuses remained vague about when or if they’d remove the encampments. Both schools released statements saying that camping on campus is prohibited. UW-Madison officials previously said they would meet with students if the tents came down. On Tuesday night, they met with faculty liaisons, but did not meet with student organizers, according to The Daily Cardinal. Editor’s note: This is story will be updated. WPR’s Robert D’Andrea, Shawn Johnson, Sarah Lehr, Angela Major , Jenny Peek and Anya van Wagtendonk contributed reporting to this story. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.wpr.org/news/police-remove-tents-at-uw-madisons-pro-palestinian-encampment Published and (C) by Wisconsin Watch Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons BY-ND 4.0 Intl. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/wisconsinwatch/