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Thursday, May 2, 2024

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IDS Thursday, May 2, 2024

INSIDE, P. 9

What you need to know for IU's graduation commencment

Indiana Daily Student | idsnews.com

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WE WILL NOT STOP, WE WILL NOT REST.' Protesters set up an encampment in Dunn Meadow for over a week to support Palestinians in Gaza and call for IU to to divest from Israel. Police have forcefully arrested 57 of the peaceful protesters. SEE PAGE 2 FOR MORE OF THE IDS' COVERAGE

IU Police Department and Indiana State Police officers have arrested a total of 57 protesters since the beginning of the IU Divestment Coalition’s encampment in Dunn Meadow on April 25. The protest has now lasted eight days and seen two incidents of forceful arrests of peaceful protesters, with 34 being arrested April 25 and 23 arrested on April 28. The incidents have gained international attention and campus-wide backlash from IU faculty, staff and students concerned over free speech rights and police aggression against students.

riot gear and others in green uniforms — were armed with assault weapons, guns with less-than-lethal rounds, shields and pepper spray. After clearing the encampment area, ISP and unidentified people in orange and yellow T-shirts tore down the remaining tents as police established a perimeter around the remaining protesters. Police put the detained protesters on board an IU bus traveling to Harry Gladstein Fieldhouse, where they were then processed and later taken to Monroe County Jail. As the bus drove away from Dunn Meadow, arrested protesters could be heard chanting pro-Palestinian slogans.

April 25 arrests Indiana State Police and the Indiana University Police Department arrested 34 pro-Palestinian protesters in Dunn Meadow on April 25 during a protest and encampment. The protest was organized by the IU Divestment Coalition, a newly created organization calling for IU to divest from Israel, among other demands. The protesters set up encampments in Dunn Meadow around 11 a.m., and by 4 p.m., IUPD and ISP descended on the scene, meeting the peaceful protest with physical force. Before the physical confrontation, IUPD and ISP announced several warnings to protesters that arrests would follow if they did not immediately take down their tents. Around 1:25 p.m., an ISP trooper announced to the crowd that Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb was aware of the situation. In response to threats of arrest, some protesters took several tents down and consolidated the encampment, guarding it through a chain of armlinked protesters who encircled the area. Arrests began right before 4 p.m., and at least 20 protesters were detained within 10 minutes. IUPD and ISP forcefully removed several protesters from tents, dragged them across the field and detained them using zip ties. ISP pushed repeatedly into the crowd, pulling people back and clashing with protesters. ISP officers — some in

What happened to protesters who were arrested April 25? Officers told IDS reporters that those arrested would be charged with criminal trespassing, while others would be charged with battery and resisting law enforcement. The IDS confirmed that several of those arrested for trespassing are now forbidden from entering IU’s campus for a year. Mark Bode, executive director of media relations at IU, sent a statement to the IDS in response to an inquiry about arrested students and faculty who were temporarily banned from campus. “We encourage affected faculty and students to engage in the appeals process by contacting IUPD,” the statement read. “Trespass ban notices will be suspended during the appeals process in nearly all cases. This will allow these students and faculty to complete the semester.” Beginning at 6:08 p.m., the arrested protesters were booked into the Monroe County Jail in two busloads. The first busload was let off one-by-one, their hands still zip-tied behind them. They were photographed with a paper stating their names in front of them and then led into the jail. They could be seen sitting on the ground until the jail door closed. Officers did not respond to immediate questions, referring IDS reporters to jail public information officers. The second bus arrived al-

By IDS staff

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group's leaders — graduate student Bryce Greene. The encounter was markedly more aggressive than April 25’s nearly ten-minute clash. Troopers aggressively moved through the line and established a perimeter in a few minutes, compared to a relative back and forth with protesters on April 25. Those arrested were loaded onto an IU bus and moved to Harry Gladstein fieldhouse before being taken to the Monroe County Jail. IUPD and ISP created a perimeter around the campsite and IU staff and grounds crew began to remove articles from the campsite, including dumping water jugs and throwing away other food items. A police vehicle was seen driving over protesters’ belongings during the camp’s clearing. ISP troopers began backing away from the scene at 1:20 p.m. and boarded an IU bus. A state trooper said officers left because they had “accomplished everything [they] set out to do.”

most an hour later. Some protesters were photographed in front of the bus, but a majority were led straight into the jail. Police had to remove protesters’ masks so they could be photographed. Friends and family members of the protesters came to the jail, waiting for them to be released. Bloomington resident Cicada Dennis’s wife, Barbara, was one of the people arrested during the protest. "She's pretty angry about the way that the police have handled the situation,” Dennis said. “The fact that they were arresting people for basically exercising their First Amendment rights to free speech. And also the way that the police like pushed her, because she was just standing, and they were pushing her and pushing her.” April 27 arrests After the IU Divestment

Coalition’s second encampment April 26 lasted overnight into April 27, Indiana State Police and IU Police Department forcibly arrested 23 protesters starting around 12:38 p.m. Police and IU employees deconstructed the encampment and stood off with protesters until leaving around 1:20 p.m. At around 12:20 p.m., an IUPD officer gave a warning to protesters that those arrested would be charged with trespassing and banned from campus, many of whom stayed in the meadow overnight, to immediately remove and vacate all tents within ten minutes. State troopers told protesters and IDS reporters that IU had called for ISP support to remove the tents. IUPD public information officer Hannah Skibba said in a statement that police gave several warnings to protest-

ers to remove the structures and those who did not comply were detained and removed. IU spokesperson Mark Bode did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding the administration’s role in the protesters’ removal. Protesters linked arms with each other to form a barricade between themselves and at least 60 Indiana State Police troopers armed with shields, batons and other riot gear. One ISP officer had an Explosive Ordnance Detection canine, used to detect explosive compounds, including ammunition and firearms. Five minutes later, state police troopers began moving toward the encampment. When reaching the line, troopers began pulling and tackling those who did not move. 23 protesters were arrested, including one of the

Bloomington's 7-Day Forecast

What were the goals of the protest? In the IU Divestment Coalition’s Instagram post announcing a rally at Dunn Meadow, the organization listed four demands. The first is the resignation of IU President Pamela Whitten, Provost Rahul Shrivastav and Vice Provost for Faculty and Academic Affairs Carrie Docherty. IU Bloomington faculty overwhelmingly passed votes of no confidence in Whitten, Shrivastav and Docherty on April 16. SEE ENCAMPMENT, PAGE 4 PHOTOS BY OLIVIA BIANCO, JACOB SPUDICH, CAROLYN MARSHALL | IDS

(TOP) A protestor waves a Palestinian flag in Dunn Meadow on April 25, 2024, in Bloomington. Many other college campuses held protests against the war in Gaza on April 25. (MIDDLE) Indiana State Police and pro-Palestinian protesters clash at the IU Divestment Coalition encampment April 27, 2024, at Dunn Meadow in Bloomington. Police arrested 23 protesters Saturday. (BOTTOM) Tents stand at the IU Divestment Coalition's encampment May 1, 2024, at Dunn Meadow in Bloomington. The encampment has been up for eight consecutive nights.

SOURCE: ETHAN CHOO | EHCHOO@IU.EDU GRAPHICS BY: LEXI LINDENMAYER | IDS

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Thursday, May 2, 2024 by Indiana Daily Student - idsnews - Issuu