University of Pennsylvania bans camps after pro-Palestinian acts

The University of Pennsylvania announced this Thursday (June 6, 2024) the ban on camping on the institution’s campus and the limitation of protests in its spaces. The decision is a response to student camps and demonstrations in April criticizing Israel’s actions in Gaza. Here is the full statement (PDF – 69 kB, in English).

The institution states that students who contravene the new rules will face disciplinary action. However, the university did not make it clear what reprisals would be applied to the university students.

“To ensure the safety of the University of Pennsylvania community and protect the health and property of individuals, camping and overnight demonstrations are not permitted at any university location, regardless of space (indoor or outdoor).”, states the note issued by the institution.

Furthermore, the new rules aim to prevent protests that could interfere with the freedom of expression of speakers or the participation of other community members in events, also prohibiting the display of slogans in buildings.

Remember protests at US universities

In April, university students held protests at several universities in the United States. In addition to the University of Pennsylvania, camps and demonstrations were recorded at Harvard, Princeton, Brown, Yale, Cornell and Dartmouth. The institutions are part of the Ivy League (group of the best universities in the USA).

Protesters called for an end to the war in the Gaza Strip. They also demanded that universities separate themselves financially and academically from institutions and companies linked to the Israeli government.

At the University of Pennsylvania, the acts culminated in the arrest of 33 people after a police intervention in a pro-Palestinian camp on the institution’s campus.

According to information from the New York Timesfrom April 18 to May 6, 2,300 people who participated in the demonstrations had already been arrested at 53 universities in the United States.