CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Pro-Palestinian students at UNC-Chapel Hill on Friday morning briefly set up a tent camp to protest Israel’s military offensive in the Gaza Strip and to express solidarity with student demonstrations at other college campuses across the United States.
Students for Justice in Palestine called on students to gather for an encampment at Polk Place on campus, seeking a meeting with university leaders to address the group’s demands.
“We have been trying to meet with university administrators who are actively invested in companies that maintain the genocidal status quo that profit from Israeli apartheid and genocide,” said Sylvie, a UNC-Chapel Hill student who did not want to disclose her last name.
By 1:30 p.m. Friday, students were dismantling tents after talks between school officials and SJP members, UNC-Chapel Hill officials said in a statement, adding that the encampment violated campus rules.
Pro-Palestinian students at Columbia University over a week ago set up a tent encampment in a protest that has continued despite negotiations with Columbia officials. Students at other colleges across the nation have launched solidarity protests.
As humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip worsen, student protesters have stepped up demands that their schools divest in companies connected to the conflict and sever financial ties to Israel.
Pro-Israeli students at UNC-Chapel Hill and other schools have said expressions of support for the Palestinians of Gaza make them feel unsafe on campus.