Paul Ellertson, online publishing coordinator
On Monday, Oct. 21, University of Minnesota students with Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) occupied Morrill Hall, an administrative building and renamed it Halimy Hall after Palestinian martyrs in Gaza. Eight current students and three former students were arrested for this action and although the students were released from Hennepin County Jail on Wednesday, Oct. 23 after 36 hours in jail, tempers are still flaring and rightfully so.
The students have the right to free speech and peaceful assembly. The fact that University Administration had the police violently arrest the students and keep them in jail for 36 hours is completely uncalled for. Not only is that a First Amendment violation, but it also keeps the students from being able to continue to be successful in their classes.
The fact that University Administration had the police violently arrest the students and keep them in jail for 36 hours is completely uncalled for.
paul ellertson
University President Rebecca Cunningham not only has the audacity to suppress the student movements, but she chose to keep them in jail for almost half the work week. Since being sworn in as the University’s President, Cunningham has kept a “neutral policy” going regarding the Palestinian genocide. This means that the University will not do anything and, if it feels the need, it will keep increasing student tuition — which in turn increases the number of student dollars funding this genocide. Not only is a neutrality policy genocidal, it also plays into the gross capitalist tradition of getting students into as much debt as possible so it can keep making money to please its Zionist donors.
And that’s not even hyperbole because the students are rightfully very concerned about how the university spends their tuition money. In the last year, after last spring’s encampment, the students were able to get a meeting with then University President Jeff Itenger. After that meeting, more students went to the Board of Regents meeting to pressure the regents to divest from weapons companies instead of increasing the yearly tuition. Despite the students’ efforts, the Board decided to increase the tuition by 5.5%.
Despite this loss, the students have kept going by organizing more protests on campus as well as holding info sessions to teach others about the university’s dealings that contribute to the genocide. Other students with SDS came to Hennepin County Jail after the students were arrested that night to protest. SDS then came back again on the morning of Oct. 22 to hold another rally and press conference. At 8 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 23, this was repeated and several members of the Minnesota Anti-War Committee joined and stayed until the 11 students were finally released that afternoon.
It’s suspected that students were in jail for a long time because Cunningham wanted to wait to press charges, as she was trying to teach the students a lesson. Despite her efforts to silence the growing student movement, she will never silence them because when some students get arrested, more students will take their places. The student movement is just getting started. We aren’t leaving and we certainly aren’t giving up.