Pro-Palestine protests staged during college commencements
3 Min Read
Between walkouts and protests, pro-Palestinian support seems to have only begun.
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Pro-Palestine protesters demonstrate during the University of Michigan’s Spring 2024 Commencement Ceremony at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Mich., on Saturday, May 4, 2024. (AP)
Protests in support of Palestine erupted on Saturday across numerous US colleges and universities as they held commencement ceremonies, including dozens of graduating students at Virginia Commonwealth University walking out during a speech by Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin.
Protesters at the University of Wisconsin-Madison seemed to stage a quiet protest at Camp Randall Stadium. The Wisconsin State Journal published a photo of people walking into the stadium's rear with two waving Palestinian flags.
Marc Lovicott, a campus police spokesperson, stated that the group, which he assumed were students since they were wearing caps and gowns, "was kind of guided out but they left on their own," citing no arrests.
Social media footage showed dozens of students storming out of Duke University's graduating ceremony on Sunday, chanting "Free Palestine" in protest of the event's keynote speaker, comedian Jerry Seinfeld, who has supported "Israel's" onslaught on Gaza as the war rages on and "Israel's" aggression continues to target innocent Palestinians.
🚨🇺🇸BREAKING: DUKE UNIVERSITY WALKS OUT OF GRADUATION
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) May 12, 2024
When Jerry Seinfeld was introduced to speak, the students got up, held up a Palestine Flag, and walked out.pic.twitter.com/p4pUfSUdjA
Protesters sprayed red paint on the steps of a building hours before the commencement ceremony at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and yelled on campus while students dressed in light blue graduation robes posed for photographs, according to The News & Observer.
During a commencement ceremony at the University of Texas in Austin, a student raised a Palestinian flag and temporarily refused to leave the stage before being led away by security.
At the University of California, Berkeley, several activists began waving flags and yelling during graduation and were led to the rear of the stadium, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. There were no significant counterprotests.
Palestine solidarity at UC Berkeley commencement today. https://t.co/sfj8qT0NnP
— samera esmeir سامرة اسمير (@SameraEsmeir) May 11, 2024
It is noteworthy that there will be no graduates in Gaza or any parents proud of their children's achievements as all of their universities have been decimated, and rather than picking up their diplomas, youth are picking up their family's body parts from under the rubble.
In January, the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor reported that the Israeli occupation forces have murdered academic personnel in the hundreds and thousands of students in the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023.
