Drexel University on lockdown as president calls for end to anti-Israel protests
Drexel University is on lockdown and Philadelphia police are responding as anti-Israel students established an encampment at the school.
Drexel University in Philadelphia has been placed on lockdown amid a mass of anti-Israel protesters taking over campus.
University officials are coordinating with Philadelphia police, and university president John Fry demanded that the encampment "must end" immediately. The protest is one of dozens still raging at campuses across the country, despite being in the final days of the school year.
"This encampment must end. I want to remind Drexel students who are participating in this protest that they could face disciplinary action for violating our Student Code of Conduct. Encampment participants who are unaffiliated with Drexel are unlawfully trespassing," Fry said in a statement directed to students on Sunday.
Police could be seen in large groups on campus throughout the weekend.
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As with protests elsewhere, demonstrators at Drexel are demanding that the university divest itself from companies that do business with Israel. They also demand that the university disclose its investments and publicly support a cease-fire in Gaza.
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The disruption at Drexel comes as universities across the country are attempting to fend off political unrest in order to host their graduation and commencement ceremonies. Some institutions have been forced to cancel the events entirely.
President Biden gave the commencement address at Morehouse College in Georgia on Sunday. While the campus was divided over him being invited prior to the event, protests during his speech were limited. Only a handful of students and teachers chose to turn their backs on him as he spoke.
Hundreds of Morehouse alumni had signed a letter to the college calling on them to rescind Biden's invitation prior to the event.
Morehouse College defended its students and faculty who turned their backs on Biden in a statement Sunday.
Morehouse said "peaceful assembly is core" to the school’s "social justice tradition," and that its administration "fully supports and defends the right to peacefully protest and the expression of one’s views openly."
"We are proud of the resilient class of 2024’s unity in silent protest, showing their intentionality in strategy, communication, and coordination as a 412-person unit," Morehouse said.