On Tuesday afternoon, University of Texas at Dallas administrators met privately with nine students and their attorneys after a protest this spring tied to Israel's war in Gaza.
On May 1, crowds set up an encampment at the UTD’s Chess Plaza to protest the institution's connection to the war. The protest resulted in 21 people being arrested. Of the group arrested at UTD, only nine had direct ties to the university.
The protests formed part of a nationwide movement started at Columbia University in New York on April 17. Students across the U.S. called for their universities to divest from companies benefitting from the war.
UTD said they called on state and local law enforcement to remove the encampment. Students and community leaders have called the charges unjust and an abuse of power as the students are accused of trespassing the institution they’re enrolled in.
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“The students should not be facing any disciplinary charges, so we demand that the students be let back on campus without restrictions and that graduated students don’t have their diplomas withheld,” said Hanan Al-lid, a sophomore at UTD.
While the affected students met behind closed doors Tuesday, their peers and supporters of the pro-Palestine movement met again at Chess Plaza.
“We’re still out here regardless, you know, after months, and we'll be out here as long as it takes,” Al-lid said. “We demand that our university drops the allegations against these students.”
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According to organizers, 16 campus-based and community organizations called for Tuesday’s protests.
“It is empowering because the students have a popular movement, and they keep gaining more influence and keep working hard,” said Tom Grau, a UTD student.
“We still face some repression by administration because of the nature of UTD's complacency,” Grau said. “I want to see the students let back on campus.”
As of Tuesday afternoon, no decision had been made by the university if they will uphold the deferred suspension or denial of degrees for recent graduates.
In an email to NBC 5, a spokesperson said, “We cannot comment on student disciplinary actions due to student privacy laws. Student disciplinary proceedings are closed.”
