University of Arizona departments criticize school's police response to protesters

At least two University of Arizona departments criticized the school’s response to Wednesday’s pro-Palestinian encampment and protest.

The demonstration resulted in police, clad in riot gear, deploying rubber bullets and chemical irritants against student-led protesters.

The Diversity Equity and Inclusion committee in the School of Government and Public Policy sent a petition to its faculty, staff and students condemning the use of force against and the arrests of student protesters. The petition will result in a letter with a statement and signatures to the president of the university. The committee clarified the petition does not represent the opinion of all members of the School of Government and Public Policy.

“No students who participate in a peaceful, non-obstructive exercise of their freedom of speech and assembly should fear for their physical safety,” the petition stated.

In the petition, the department also said it was “appalled” by the disproportionate use of force against peaceful demonstrators.

“The harsh treatment against students on campus promotes a culture of fear and is deeply antithetical to the mission of an educational institution,” the petition stated.

The criticism came after university officials ordered police to enforce campus policies "without further warning" and clear the encampment and subsequent protests that gathered around University Avenue and Park Avenue in the early hours Wednesday. Administrators and police spent several hours warning students to clear the encampment or face arrest before the order was announced.

The Center for Latin American Studies also condemned the police response to the protest and encampment. In a letter, the department said it was “dismayed” by the “violent police action” against students on the order of university administration.

“As Latin Americanists who have collectively witnessed and lived through many instances of state-sponsored violent suppression,” the department said in the email. “We are proud of the students who have the courage to stand up for their beliefs and affirm their right to protest peacefully."

In a different letter, other faculty also criticized the use of police to clear the encampment and protest in a letter to university president Dr. Robert Robbins signed by 336 members, saying they were writing in “horror, dismay and anger.”

“Under the cloak of enforcing a legal curfew, you violated not only the primary directive of caring for students in your charge but also turned a peaceful protest into a violent confrontation,” the letter stated.

The letters from faculty and the Center for Latin American Studies both noted that the president should have followed the example of the President of Wesleyan University, who let a peaceful encampment remain, despite it violating university policy.

The UA faculty asked the president to avoid pursuing action against the student protesters and to drop existing criminal charges.

“We refuse to water down our politics to placate President Robbins and the Board of Regents ... We will not compromise, we will not back down,” the group said.

Student groups said the university backtracked on offers of dialogue with Pro-Palestinian student groups, threatened more action

Students Against Apartheid, a coalition of students, university staff, and community members who led the encampment efforts, said in a statement that the university rescinded an offer to meet with students and refused to engage in further dialogue about their demands.

Their demands range from being transparent about financial connections to Israel and weapons manufacturers to dismissing several members of the dean’s advisory board and divesting from certain companies. The goal of the encampment, said student leaders, was to protest the killing of Palestinians in Gaza. Following the administration’s response to Wednesday’s protesters, the group also demanded the university commit to a meaningful divestment plan within the next week.

“Failure to respond and calls for closed-door negotiations will prompt us to take further action in solidarity with Gaza to ensure our demands are recognized,” the group said in its statement.

The group also criticized President Robbins’ statement about the school's response to the protests. The student-led coalition said his response “blatantly mischaracterized the movement, ignored students' demands, and praised police response despite the danger they posed to his students.”

In his letter to the community, Robbins said protesters resisted arrest and threw "projectiles" at law enforcement and said the protesters and counter-protesters created a "volatile" environment on Park Avenue leading law enforcement to clear the street.

Robbins’ comments also included a quote made by protesters who reportedly chanted, “If you come in, we will fight you,” at police. The student group said the chant was intended as a rallying cry “for mutual defense against violent state repression.” The use of the singular quote distorted the sentiment behind the encampment, said the group.

The group also said Robbins’ statement refused to acknowledge the agitators and counter-protesters, many of whom were intoxicated, while also prioritizing the safety of law enforcement over that of unarmed students.

Reach the reporter at sarah.lapidus@gannett.com. The Republic’s coverage of southern Arizona is funded, in part, with a grant from Report for America. Support Arizona news coverage with a tax-deductible donation at supportjournalism.azcentral.com.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: University of Arizona departments decry school's response to protesters