The 19 pro-Palestine protesters arrested for disrupting a University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents meeting Thursday will receive citations for deliberately creating a “volume of noise that unreasonably interfered” with the meeting, UWPD announced Tuesday.
One individual also received an additional citation for intentionally spitting on someone’s food in the meeting room.
Around 50 pro-Palestine protesters disrupted a Board of Regents meeting at Gordon Dining & Event Center at 8:30 a.m. Thursday to demand UW-Madison financially and socially divest from Israel.
Eight of those arrested were affiliated with UW-Madison, though it’s unclear if they were students or faculty. Two of those arrested were alumni, according to UWPD. Four of those arrested were affiliated with UW-Milwaukee, and five had no UW affiliation.
UWPD detained the 19 protesters in Gordon Commons for a short period, prompting social media posts from UW-Madison Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and other groups urging people to call UWPD and ask for the release of those detained.
After the disruption, police officers prevented the public, journalists and even some UW officials from accessing the Board of Regents meeting, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. A UW-Madison police officer said the situation represented a “safety issue” and that they could watch the livestream.
About 15 of those protesting were students from UW-Milwaukee, where a dozen UWM protesters held a one-minute disruption at a Board of Regents meeting last spring.
Previously, the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standard launched an investigation into SJP on Dec. 6 for allegedly violating the university’s Expressive Activity Policy during the protest earlier that morning.
University spokesperson John Lucas told the Cardinal Dec. 7 that “UW supports the right to free expression within the bounds of the law and campus policy” and that the investigation and arrests were due to “disruptive behaviors” and violation of the Expressive Activity Policy.
Ella Hanley is the associate news editor for The Daily Cardinal. She has written breaking, city, state and campus news. Follow her on Twitter at @ellamhanley.
