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Police remove tents at UW-Madison’s pro-Palestinian encampment [1]

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Date: 2024-05-01 15:24:26+00:00

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Students protesters at the University of Wisconsin-Madison clashed with police Wednesday after officers cleared out a pro-Palestinian encampment just two days after the student protest began.

University police gave the students staying at the encampment a warning to evacuate shortly before 7 a.m, according to a UW-Madison spokesperson.

By 9:05 a.m. all but two tents had been removed, and UW-Madison Police had left the area.

For two hours Wednesday morning, several dozen police officers, including UW-Madison Police, Madison Police, Dane County sheriff’s officers and the State Patrol, carried plastic shields and moved tents and other gear to a trailer.

In a statement to WPR, UW-Madison spokesperson John Lucas said students received multiple warnings.

“After multiple warnings both this morning and in recent days that camping is not permitted according to campus policy and state law, UWPD and other law enforcement agencies began clearing the encampment set up on Library Mall on the UW-Madison campus,” he said.

Shortly after 8 a.m. police began arresting protesters. UW-Madison professor Sami Schalk was escorted by two officers as students shouted, “They’re arresting professors.” Protesters were detained in handcuffs and zip ties and taken away from the encampment.

Police escort UW-Madison professor Sami Schalk after she was arrested at the pro-Palestinian encampment on campus on Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (Angela Major / WPR)

Madison police arrested multiple protesters from the pro-Palestinian encampment on the UW-Madison campus on Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (Angela Major / WPR)

UW-Madison Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin said in a statement about 30 protesters were cited and a dozen were arrested after resisting police action.

“Every individual was given the opportunity to move away from the tent area and continue peaceful protest,” Mnookin wrote. “I cannot emphasize strongly enough our support for free expression and peaceful protest. Now that the illegal activity has been resolved, students and others are free to resume peaceful protest that abides by campus protest guidelines today or at any time in the future.”

But two hours later, protesters began setting up a new encampment with at least 15 tents. Leaders of the demonstration held trainings on how to resist further arrests and made plans for a march and rally for Wednesday afternoon.

UW-Madison Police Department spokesperson Marc Lovicott said demonstrators are welcome to be on Library Mall as long as tents are removed.

At about 9:30 a.m. UW-Madison Dean of Students Christina Olstad approached the demonstration and was quickly chased off by protesters. They said she “didn’t protect students.” Meanwhile, leaders of the demonstration were holding a training on how to resist further arrests.

Protests part of nationwide campus movement against Israel-Gaza war

The protest at UW-Madison, and a similar one at UW-Milwaukee, began on Monday. It came two weeks after students at Columbia University established the first such encampment.

The scene at UW-Milwaukee was calm Wednesday morning. A spokesperson for the university said officials were aware of what was happening in Madison.

“At this time, UWM Police will continue to monitor the encampment on the lawn south of Mitchell Hall,” the statement said. “UWM’s first priority is the safety and well-being of our students, employees and visitors. Members of the UWM administration are having conversations with students and community members in the background and are working on peaceful resolutions.”

Protesters gather following multiple arrests at the pro-Palestinian encampment on the UW-Madison campus on Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (Angela Major / WPR)

Protesters lock arms and surround tents as police methodically go one by one and remove them from Library Mall on the UW-Madison campus on Wednesday, May 1, 2024. (Shawn Johnson / WPR)

Similar movements have spread to campuses across the country. They are a protest against the Israel-Gaza war and a demand that university administrations divest from Israeli companies, programs and causes.

Throughout the two days of UW protest, administrations on both campuses remained vague about when or if they’d remove the encampments. Both schools released statements saying that camping on campus is prohibited. UW-Madison officials previously said they would meet with students if the tents came down.

On Tuesday night, they met with faculty liaisons, but did not meet with student organizers, according to The Daily Cardinal.

This story was originally published and is being updated on WPR.

WPR’s Robert D’Andrea, Shawn Johnson, Sarah Lehr, Angela Major and Jenny Peek contributed reporting to this story.

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[1] Url: https://wisconsinwatch.org/2024/05/wisconsin-madison-university-protest-palestinian-police-tents-encampment/

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