How Responses to Campus Protests Differed Nationwide
Summary from the AllSides News Team
U.S. schools have had vastly different responses to pro-Palestine protests on their campuses over the past few weeks.
Police Intervention: At Columbia University, the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA), and many others, police were summoned to quell protests that in some cases had turned violent and significantly disrupted campus operations.
Striking Deals: At Northwestern University and Brown University, protesters agreed to disband encampments in exchange for school officials considering divesting from Israel. Portland State University agreed to pause donations to Boeing, which makes some aircraft used by the Israeli military, but protests on the campus continue.
Minimal Interaction: At UC Berkeley, protesters have been allowed to maintain a protest space in front of Sproul Hall since April 22, and few examples of violence have been reported.
How the Media Covered It: Many outlets on the left and some in the center seem to sympathize with the protesters; outlets on the right often sympathize with police and people affected by campus disruptions. Some sources framed police intervention as a threat to student safety. Reuters (Center bias) said California schools had "seen in the past where police involvement can lead." Others, like the Washington Examiner (Lean Right), praised police responses as "swift and successful."
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Generally, there have been two approaches to police on university or college campuses. Initially, university administrators asked local police to respond to issues with antiwar demonstrators during the Vietnam War and with women’s rights protests in the 1960s. When many of those encounters did not go very well for anyone, campus police departments were created. Today, about two-thirds of universities and colleges – mainly public ones, like University of California, Los Angeles – have their...
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