Pro-Palestinian encampment at UC Berkeley taken down following agreement
BERKELEY – Protesters who set up a pro-Palestinian encampment on the University of California, Berkeley campus ended their protest Tuesday, following an agreement reached by university officials.
According to the agreement reached with chancellor Carol Christ, the university has agreed to look at whether companies it invests in align with its values. The focus would be on companies that might be involved in weapons manufacturing, mass incarceration or surveillance.
In a letter, Christ also said that she plans to call for a ceasefire in Gaza.
"I, too, am concerned about the horrific killing of tens of thousands of Palestinians as well as the destruction of the Palestinian educational infrastructure. I plan to make a public statement by the end of the month sharing my personal support for government officials' efforts to secure an immediate and permanent ceasefire," Christ said in a statement. "Such support for the plight of Palestinians, including protest, should not be conflated with hatred or antisemitism."
Meanwhile, the university rejected an outright call for full divestment from Israel and said it won't consider an academic boycott involving Israel.
"Just today, we got confirmation to the school this letter that we've been building towards" Yazen Kahslam, one of the protesters, told CBS News Bay Area.
When asked what the next steps would be, Kahslam said, "Regents. Follow us to Merced, people are setting up there now."
The UC Regents, who make the final call on the university's investments, are meeting in Merced this week.
Meanwhile, students at San Francisco State University has also reached an agreement with its faculty. The protesters said the university has committed to a divestment of weapons manufacturers and have agreed to create a screening process to pinpoint future investments that violate human rights.
While the UC Berkeley encampment was being dismantled, other pro-Palestinian encampments remain in place at other campuses. At the University of San Francisco, protesters defied a deadline set for 3 p.m. Tuesday to leave their encampment. While there are no plans to forcibly remove tents, any students could be punished for violating the school's student code of conduct.