On the eve of the law school’s graduation, Rutgers-Newark’s latest request for pro-Palestinian protesters to clear their encampment at the school drew strong reaction but little resolution on Wednesday.
The encampment is now on Day 22. Participants have been calling on Rutgers to divest from Israel and reinvest resources in Newark’s communities and their needs, like more affordable housing. But despite two negotiation meetings with school administration, students have said their demands are still not being met.
Rutgers-Newark’s administration maintains it reached out to students in good faith at the start of their protest to address their concerns. The school also said it reached out to students again Tuesday and is waiting for them to respond.
Protest leaders said the standoff is reaching a critical point with graduation days away.
“I get it, you work three years, this is the culmination of the peak highlight of your career,” says Anthony Diaz, executive director and co-founder of the Newark Water Coalition and member of the Newark Solidarity Coalition. “Then you come and you see this Palestinian encampment.
“But I think what we have to realize is Americans, we don’t live in a bubble,” he said. “All of these interconnecting points, intersectionality of the struggle, the land back for the Palestinians and the land back for Newarkers, it’s all tied up in one another. So people need to constantly be reinforced in that.”
