A group of masked students gathered in the Starbucks lounge on the first day of classes to protest the administration’s response to the ‘wanted’ posters and alleged complicity in the war in Gaza.
Over the course of an hour, the group called for several changes by the University, including for an arms embargo, an end to the “siege on Gaza,” University administration to stop its “institutional complicity” in funding Israel, and the University to drop the charges against the four students arrested in conjunction with the ‘wanted’ posters.
“We have built up the power of the student movement on our campuses,” one masked speaker said. “We […] cannot and will not allow our campuses to return to the status quo.”
The protest was in part a response to the progression of the cases against Samantha Escobar, Jefferson Turcios, Naomi Gutierrez, and Jonathan Bermudez, who were arrested and charged last semester with felony criminal mischief in the second degree. Their next trial date is on Feb. 4.
A social media post by the University of Rochester’s branch of Students for Justice in Palestine claimed on Friday that the four students were expelled from the University for their involvement in the ‘wanted’ posters. The University declined to comment on the academic statuses of the students, citing the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).
The protest also addressed the Israel-Hamas ceasefire announced on Jan. 15.
Speakers at the protest on campus told the audience that the “temporary ceasefire” was a reprieve, but that the “fight” was not over.
The first phase of the ceasefire put a stop to the fighting and allowed for the exchange of prisoners. Over 30 prisoners across both sides have been released. As of Sunday, Jan. 26 at 5:30 p.m. Israel has claimed that Hamas violated the terms of the ceasefire, and its future is uncertain.
“Today, we feel the relief in this pause of the genocide,” a masked speaker said at the protest on Jan. 21. “I share this joy with millions of others who, for the first time in over a year, have a moment of peace.”
Israel and Hamas are expected to begin negotiating the second phase of the ceasefire, which would include full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, by Feb. 4.
The protest was unregistered, and violated the University’s Demonstrations, Vigils, and Peaceful Protests Policy. After being asked to leave by library staff, the group moved to several different locations throughout Wilson Commons and Rush Rhees Library.
