
Many pro-Palestinian protesters were asked to leave an encampment at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) by Monday's, May 6, deadline, reports AP. The request was followed by the eviction of several demonstrators. However, a few protesters returned to the site shortly after the eviction.
According to the report, protesters were given an afternoon deadline, within which, to voluntarily leave the protest site or face suspension.
Meanwhile, at the Rhode Island School of Design, other protesters began occupying a building. Both events are part of the ongoing protest movement related to the Israel-Hamas conflict.
On Monday night, May 6, dozens of protesters remained at the encampment in a calmer atmosphere, listening to speakers and chanting before taking a pizza dinner break.
A graduate student named Sam Ihns, who is currently pursuing Mechanical Engineering at MIT, and is also a member of MIT Jews for a Ceasefire, has been present at the encampment for the last two weeks. According to Sam, their group is demanding an end to the violence in Gaza, reports AP.
“Specifically, our encampment is protesting MIT's direct research ties to the Israeli Ministry of Defense,” he said.
Earlier in the day Erica Caple James, a professor of Medical Anthropology and Urban Studies at MIT, attended the protests as a faculty observer and an adviser to the Alliance of Concerned Faculty.
“My hope is that the day ends without harm befalling anyone, without there being physical violence and hopefully with space to open negotiations again between the administration and students, faculty and staff who are concerned about MIT's global influence,” she said.
No arrests had been made as of Monday night, May 6, according to the MIT spokesperson.
Rhode Island School of Design and other campuses
At the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), where students began occupying a building on Monday, May 6, a spokesperson said the school supports all members of the community and upholds students' rights to free speech and peaceful assembly, states the AP report.
The RISD president and provost were on site meeting with the protesters, the spokesperson said.
Demonstrations at Columbia University, where the protest movement began about three weeks ago, have roiled its campus, states AP.
Officials on Monday cancelled its large main ceremony, but said students will be able to celebrate at a series of smaller, school-based ceremonies this week and next.
The decision was made while colleges all around the nation debated how to handle commencements for students whose 2020 high school graduations were marred by COVID-19, states AP.