A growing number of protest tents were going up on the UC Berkeley campus Tuesday as Cal students joined the growing wave of pro-Palestinian demonstrations taking place at schools across the country.
The encampment has more than doubled since Monday. As of Tuesday evening, there were more than two dozen tents pitched outside of Sproul Hall, and students said they’re not going to budge until their demands are met.
"I believe it’s one of the most noble acts to stand on the right side of justice and to speak out against genocide, but it is also one of the most bare minimum things we can do," law student Malak Agenah said.
Student demonstrators are demanding that UC Berkeley sever all ties with Israeli institutions, including halting the global internship program in Israel. They’re also demanding that the university financially divest from companies that support Israel.
"Over $2 billion of our tuition money goes to funding contracts with weapons and arms manufactures like Boeing, Lockheed Martin and many more," Agenah said.
Students said they were inspired by the protests at Columbia University, where 100 protesters were arrested last week. Similar protests have been taking place at other universities.
Protesters said they fully expect Cal to try to clear them out.
"I expect the school perhaps within 24 or 48 hours to give us notice of the charges, of the student conduct charges, they could hold against us," Agenah said. "And when we refuse to leave, which we will, they’ll likely call UCPD and Berkeley PD."
Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. >Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.
While UC Berkeley spokesman Dan Mogulof said the university is committed to free speech, he said it’s also committed to making sure classes aren’t disrupted. He also said divestment isn’t on the table.
"We’ve heard what their demands are," he said. "There are no plans to change our investment strategies, policies or practices."
Student protesters said they’re willing to put everything on the line to help stop what they describe as the mass killing of innocent people in Gaza.
"If this costs me my future, my job, me having a professorship, then that’s fine as long as it’s in a liberated Palestine," Leila, a graduate student, said. "I can sleep at night knowing that I did everything that I could to free Palestine."
