Thirteen Princeton University students were arrested on Monday for staging a sit-in at Clio Hall on campus. Their acts were independent of those of the other students who had created an encampment behind Nassau Hall. That encampment was built to protest the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza.
The 13 students were barred from campus, so News 12 New Jersey spoke with them nearby in Palmer Square. Their message is similar to what has been heard on campuses throughout the country: they want Princeton University to disclose its ties to Israel and divest.
“Princeton University and universities across the world actively profit from this bloodshed with investments and associations,” said one student.
The 13 students have been barred from campus, charged with trespassing, and expelled from Princeton housing.
University President Eisgruber condemned the student sit-in, saying, “Everyone on this campus needs to feel safe and be safe.” Faculty, students, and staff must be allowed to carry out university operations without interruption, harassment, or threat.
The administration has thus far permitted the campsite behind Nassau Hall to remain on campus. The children have taken over the green space for the past five days. The institution has outlawed tents, so there is a patchwork of blankets and pillows. The students stated that they will stay until they receive what they wanted, which was a meeting to discuss Princeton’s links to Israel.
They stated that they had seen photographs of conflict and wanted their school to condemn such brutality.
The Princeton students are comparable to those at Columbia University, where students recently took over a hall, and at the University of Texas, where 80 students were detained. Similar protests are taking place in schools across the country, including UCLA and Wisconsin. As final examinations begin next week, the students swear they will not leave the cause or the campground.
“Until the University agrees to meet with our negotiating team we are not moving from the site,” the student said.
Classes have ended for the semester.