Students at the University of Texas at Austin find themselves divided over the recent police crackdown, which resulted in the arrest of 57 individuals.
On Thursday, hundreds of people gathered for a demonstration, just like the previous day. The purpose of the protest was to exert pressure on UT Austin to divest from weapons manufacturers who were profiting from Israel’s war in Gaza. Additionally, the demonstrators aimed to voice their opposition to the university’s crackdown on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs.
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Protesters took to the streets, holding signs that bore powerful messages. Some signs read “Save Gaza,” while others boldly proclaimed “Jews for a Free Palestine.” Among the crowd, a sign stood out, accusing UT Austin’s president, Jay Hartzell, of cowardice. As the protesters raised their voices, the towering presence of the campus building served as a constant reminder of the recent arrests that had taken place.
According to both Pro-Palestine students and UT faculty, the protests on Wednesday became chaotic due to the police response. On the other hand, pro-Israel students argue that the police presence ensured the safety of the campus.
Travis County Attorney Delia Garza has dropped the charges against 46 out of the 57 protesters who were arrested on Wednesday. According to The Texas Tribune, Garza determined that all but 13 of the cases did not have sufficient evidence to establish probable cause.
According to local media reports, there was no violence observed on Wednesday until authorities stepped in, using batons to intervene, handcuffing students, and pushing protesters back.
Pro-Israel students have voiced their approval of the police’s response to the situation. According to Etai, a junior at UT Austin, the arrests made on Wednesday have served as a wake-up call, demonstrating that individuals cannot simply engage in any behavior they desire without consequences. Etai personally witnessed protesters physically assaulting the police, throwing horse manure, and even issuing derogatory remarks, such as telling him to “go back to Poland.”
Raneem, a senior at UT and member of the Palestine Solidarity Committee, expressed concerns about students gathering on Thursday, fearing a forceful response. However, she noted that today, state troopers, helicopters, mace, and other forceful measures were not being used on students who were peacefully exercising their First Amendment rights.
Raneem blamed the chaos on the police, stating that they instigated the situation. According to her, the protesters, who were students, were peacefully standing and expressing their views. However, the police would suddenly enter the scene, apprehend individuals without any provocation, and take them into custody, even though they had not engaged in any physical confrontation with the officers.
According to her, a student leader attempting to disperse participants was arrested by the police on Wednesday. She also mentioned that the police used excessive force, including pepper spray and brutal tactics, while pulling them into police cars.
“It was an incredibly shocking scene as numerous students were vomiting while being forcefully escorted into police vehicles. The situation was completely unexpected, leaving everyone taken aback.”
The arrests made on Wednesday have caused grave alarm among the UT professors, as expressed by the Faculty Council in a letter written on Thursday.
UT President Hartzell’s decision to invite Department of Public Safety officers, armed and in riot gear, onto the Forty Acres to disrupt a nonviolent protest was specifically highlighted.
On Wednesday night, amidst the growing backlash against the arrests, Hartzell expressed that the university remained steadfast in upholding its rules while simultaneously safeguarding the constitutional right to free speech.
He emphasized that peaceful protests that adhere to our rules are acceptable, but it is not permitted to violate our rules, policies, or disrupt others’ ability to learn.
The university defended the arrests in statements on Thursday, stating that approximately half of the 55 individuals taken into custody were not affiliated with the University of Texas at Austin.
According to the statement, there have been thirteen pro-Palestine free speech events at the University since October, which have largely taken place without incident. However, this particular protest expressed intent to disrupt the campus by occupying the lawn below the administrative building.
According to The Texas Tribune, the faculty council has rejected this response, and there is currently a circulating faculty petition calling for a vote of no confidence against Hartzell.
On Thursday, the Faculty Council expressed their dissatisfaction with President Hartzell’s message to the community on Wednesday night, stating that they do not believe it adequately justifies the University’s conduct.
“How can we expect our students or the public writ large to be tolerant of viewpoints with which some (or even many) of us disagree if we ourselves cannot model this behavior?”
Professor Kirsten “Kit” Belgum, an expert on the rise of German nationalism, echoed this sentiment. During the protest, she held a sign that boldly stated “Education Needs Free Speech.” In an interview with The Hill, Belgum explained her presence at the demonstration, expressing her strong disapproval of the police’s response on Wednesday, which she found deeply offensive.
Even during sporting events, Belgum expressed his concern about such shouts, saying that they “remind me too much of Nazi Germany. I don’t engage in such behavior. However, my purpose here is to question the university’s decision to suppress a peaceful demonstration with armed military and horses. It goes against the principles of education, and I fail to see the necessity for it.”
Belgum explains that the actions of the police “potentially escalated” the situation, which ultimately led to the protests we see today. He emphasizes that his presence at the protest is solely due to the belief that yesterday’s events had a chilling effect on free speech.
Both pro-Palestine protesters, who made up the majority of those gathered on Thursday, and pro-Israel counterprotesters expressed concerns about their safety on campus.
According to the Palestine Solidarity Committee, protesters supporting Palestine stated that the police intervened on Wednesday when they were attempting to comply with orders to disperse.
According to Hadi, a UT student who preferred not to disclose his last name, the protests on Thursday were more intense yet still relatively peaceful compared to what would have happened on Wednesday if the police had not intervened.
“They tarnished the university’s reputation,” Hadi expressed. “Yesterday could have been a more idyllic scene with people peacefully sitting on the lawn, reading, and taking study breaks. However, the police chose to escalate the situation by bringing in riot police and wielding batons.”
According to Raneem, a senior who supports Palestine, the deployment of police on Wednesday should instill fear in everyone. It is not just the residents of Texas or the students at UT, but the entire nation should be concerned about the state of democracy, as our fundamental rights are being violated.
According to The Hill, pro-Israel counterprotesters have expressed concerns about their freedom of speech being suppressed.
Gil, a senior affiliated with a pro-Israel group, expressed his perspective to The Hill regarding his Middle Eastern studies classes. According to him, there is a clear anti-Israel bias, which he believes begins with the introductory Israeli history class he took last year. This particular course was taught by a professor who is a Palestinian citizen of Israel.
“I believe it is inappropriate for a Palestinian individual to teach Israeli history. While Israeli history certainly encompasses Arab history, it primarily revolves around the Jewish narrative as it is a Jewish country. Therefore, if someone identifies themselves as Palestinian first, it may be challenging for them to maintain objectivity and impartiality when teaching the history of Israel.”
In that class last year, Gil mentioned that he used to raise his hand every five minutes. He would do so in order to correct the teacher whenever he made a mistake or forgot to mention something crucial to the story.
He no longer feels comfortable engaging in this activity. “Now I refrain from it because I have experienced people in classes yelling at me and labeling me as a Zionist,” he expressed.
Jewish opinion at the protests was split. Jewish Voices for Peace, a group that opposes the occupation, participated in both days of the protest to show solidarity with the Palestine Solidarity Committee. Many individuals in the crowd wore kippot or necklaces adorned with the Hebrew word “chai,” which symbolizes life.
However, like many instances of alleged antisemitism that are currently being discussed on college campuses across the nation, what made Etai and Gil feel unsafe appeared to be predominantly the speech of their fellow students. This included statements in support of “intifada,” which is the Palestinian concept of “uprising” or “shaking off,” as well as other students referring to Hamas as “a resistance movement.”
