Two protesters were arrested at an anti-Israel demonstration organized by Princeton Israeli Apartheid Divest (PIAD) group at Princeton University yesterday after they attempted to set up a tent encampment in violation of school policy. The university’s police force, known as the Princeton University Public Safety department, gave several warnings before taking action against protesters who were blocking access to certain buildings and causing disturbance by chanting slogans like “Popular university For Gaza”.
The PIAD group criticized the school’s authorities for their actions on social media, calling them ‘pigs’. They urged supporters of their cause to call upon Princeton administration to stand in solidarity with Gazan people and protestors. The protesters also set up a library, an art project, and a yoga area at McCosh Courtyard where the demonstration took place.
In response to these events, Rabbi Eitan Webb of Chabad House, who was part of a group counter-protesting with American and Israeli flags nearby, commended Princeton administration for their fair handling of protesters’ actions. He noted that such protests violate specific guidelines about threatening behaviors towards individuals, breach student/ employee security at Princeton University, or disrupt essential operations on campus.
President Christopher Eisgruber had previously warned students in an op-ed published by the university newspaper regarding these types of protest activities. According to him, any individual involved in such actions would be arrested and immediately barred from school property upon refusal to discontinue them following warnings. In line with his position, both protesters were cited for trespassing after being apprehended yesterday evening; the tents erected by these demonstrators have also been taken down voluntarily afterward.
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