Rutgers suspends Palestinian organization
Also issued new protest policies
By: Deena Yellin
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
.... Rutgers University has issued a one-year suspension for one of the groups that led spring [2024] protests against the war in Gaza and a four-day encampment on its New Brunswick campus.
.....
The New Brunswick chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine has been banned from participating in campus activities for the coming academic year, after the university said it violated terms of an earlier probation, said an e-mailed statement from Rutgers.
..... The university also announced a series of other policies on campus protests this week, [08/20/2024] including a ban on the type of encampments hat sprang up at Rutgers and other U.S. college earlier this year. [2024]
..... the New Brunswick action disbanded peacefully after the school agreed to steps including meeting with protesters to discuss their demand that the university divest from companies tied to Israel through Rutgers didn't commit to withdrawing funds.
..... Rutgers said its suspension of SJP will last until 'at least July 4, 2025." The fall semester is scheduled to begin September 3. [2024]
..... "During this period SJP is not recognized by the university and cannot reserve rooms, participate in campus activities, join intramural sports or serve on councils," dory Devlin, a Rutgers spokesperson, said in the statement. Students for Justice in Palestine "violated the terms of their probationary status and other university policies by disrupting final exams and university operations and failing to comply with university directives."
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In response to a request for comment, SJP referred NorthJersey.com to social media posts form the group that detailed Rutgers' new speech policies. Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway "continues to recycle the same rhetoric, while cresting new systems of repression," SJP said in one post. The group declined to discuss the suspension.
New guidelines on free expression
..... In a new "Free Expression at Rutgers" web-page launched Tuesday, [08/20/2024] the university said it is "committed to the freedom of speech" but also would "preserve the right of all in our community to learn, teach, and carry out the university's essential work."
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Among the guidelines outlined by Rutgers:
* Individuals who want to hold protests are required to submit notification forms at least three days before the scheduled demonstration and obtain a permit.
* Demonstrations must not disrupt academic or business operations of the university and must be held in a field that has been designed for protest on campus.
* encampments are not permitted.
* Individuals may demonstrate and/or pass out leaflets outside when there is a speaker or program but must be within a designated area established by the University Police Department to prevent disruption of the scheduled event.
* Demonstrators are not permitted to hinder the ability of participants to enter or exit programs.
Group has faced sanctions
..... Rutgers suspended the SJP group in December, [2023] saying at the time that its decision was due to "student protesting in nonpublic forums, causing disruption to classes and university functions, which are violations of university policy."
..... The suspension was lifted in January, [2024] but Rutgers also imposed a one-year probation period after an investigation.
..... Tensions on campus have risen since the October 7 [2024] Hamas attack on Israel, in which 1,200 people were killed and 250 hostages were taken in Gaza has killed roughly 40,000, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.
..... Some Jewish students have reported feeling unsafe and threatened by the protests on campus. Pro-Palestiaian organizers, meanwhile, have chafed at what they say are unfair restrictions that limit free speech.
..... Rutgers is not alone in its decision.
..... Other colleges, including Columbia University, Brandeis, case Western, the University of Florida and George Washington, have also suspended their SJP chapters at points in the past year.
..... Lisa Harris Glass, CEO of Hillel at Rutgers, said she was appreciative of the leadership at Rutgers University for clarifying and for implementing the new polices on campus that they are working to improve the climate on campus for the coming year," [2024-2025] she said.
..... The suspension of SJP may not quell the protests on campus, however. At a recent student orientation program, a group called NJBURN (Build Up Resistance Now) held a pop-up protest, accusing the school of being involved in a "genocide in Gaza."
..... Staff Writer Hannan Adely contributed to this story email:yellin@northjersey.com.