A Pro-Palestinian protest at University of Southern California’s Alumni Park that started Wednesday morning grew in size and intensity by the afternoon after campus police confronted the crowd and ordered the dismantling of the encampment.
Tensions grew after officers forced the protesters to take down their tents and a protester was detained.
The encampment went up at the park Wednesday morning, similar to other pro-Palestinian encampments that have been part of other college campuses across the nation.
The group issued a list of demands including university divestment from any organizations that “profit from Israeli apartheid, genocide and occupation in Palestine.”
Campus Department of Public Safety officers visited the encampment, instructed students not to hang signs, flags or other materials from trees and posts in the park, and warned them not to use megaphones.
Students at times broke into chants of “Free Palestine,” and when the student was detained, they chanted, “Let him go.”
The man was eventually released after protesters surrounded a USC Department of Public Safety Vehicle.
Los Angeles Police has also responded to USC to offer assistance, though the protest remained peaceful after the confrontation.
Around 1:30 p.m., the university closed its gates, and asked visitors to be prepared to show an ID for class or for business.
Today’s protest comes as USC made national headlines in recent weeks over its decision to bar pro-Palestinian valedictorian Asna Tabassum from speaking during the May 10 commencement ceremony.
USC officials said the decision was done not for political reasons, but over safety concerns. Organizations including the Muslim Public Affairs Council, the Council on American-Islamic Relations-Los Angeles and the ACLU of Southern California have denounced the decision and demanded the university reverse course and allow Tabassum to speak.
Then on Friday, USC made the call to cancel some outside speakers and honorees during the commencement program. Filmmaker Jon M. Chu had been slated as the main commencement speaker.
This is a developing story.