PROTESTERS. YEAH, RIGHT NOW IT LOOKS LIKE JUST A NORMAL SPRING DAY HERE ON THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO CAMPUS. STUDENTS WALKING BETWEEN CLASSES ALL VERY QUIET, BUT IT WAS A VERY DIFFERENT SCENE HERE ON THE QUAD. JUST A FEW HOURS AGO NOW, JUST BEFORE 5:00 THIS MORNING, ABOUT 50 UNIVERSITY POLICE OFFICERS IN RIOT GEAR MOVED IN AND BEGAN TEARING DOWN THE TENT ENCAMPMENT THAT HAD BEEN IN PLACE HERE FOR THE PAST EIGHT DAYS OR SO. THEY ALSO HANDED OUT FLIERS SAYING THE STUDENTS COULD FACE DISCIPLINE UP TO AND INCLUDING SUSPENSION IF THEY DIDN'T LEAVE NOW. THIS ACTION CAME AFTER THE PRO PALESTINIAN PROTESTERS WERE WARNED A NUMBER OF TIMES OVER THE PAST FEW DAYS THAT THEY NEEDED TO CLEAR THE AREA. THE PROTESTERS THIS MORNING WERE ANGRY ABOUT HAVING THEIR TENTS REMOVED, BEING FORCED OFF THE QUAD, BUT THERE WERE NO ARRESTS OR SERIOUS INJURIES REPORTED. POLICE THEN USED BARRICADES TO SET UP A PERIMETER AROUND THE QUAD AND PREVENTED STUDENTS FROM ENTERING THE AREA, AND SEVERAL HUNDRED PROTESTERS BEGAN CHANTING AND YELLING AT POLICE IN A STANDOFF THAT LASTED UNTIL ABOUT 9:00 THIS MORNING, WHEN THE SKIES OPENED UP AND A DELUGE OF RAIN CAME DOWN, PROMPTING PRETTY MUCH EVERYONE TO SCATTER. NOW SOME OF THE PROTESTERS, INCLUDING BOTH STUDENTS AND FACULTY, ARE ANGRY ABOUT THE WAY THE UNIVERSITY HANDLED THE SITUATION THIS MORNING. YEAH, IT WAS HORRIFIC. THEY WAITED LIKE COWARDS UNTIL EVERY SINGLE STUDENT WAS ASLEEP IN THEIR TENT, BASICALLY. AND THEN THEY STORMED IN MAYBE 40 OR 50 OF THEM WITH RIOT GEAR, GEAR SCREAMING, THEY STARTED THROWING WOOD PLANKS, THROWING CHAIRS, THROWING ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING IN ANY DIRECTION TO DESTROY THE CAMP. AS FAST AS POSSIBLE, TO SUPPRESS THIS MOVEMENT AS FAST AS POSSIBLE. AND IN FACT, ONE OF THE CHAIRS THAT THEY THREW CAME WITHIN MAYBE THREE INCHES OF HITTING MY GIRLFRIEND IN THE HEAD. WE JUST WANTED TO PROTECT OUR STUDENTS. AND SO TO BE TO SUDDENLY NOT HAVE ACCESS TO THE QUAD, TO SUDDENLY NOT HAVE ACCESS TO OUR WORKPLACE AND TO NOT HAVE ACCESS TO OUR STUDENTS, TO NOT BE ABLE TO STAND, YOU KNOW, TO, TO BE WITNESSES TO BE PROTECTORS FOR OUR STUDENTS. IT'S REALLY DEVASTATING. WHAT'S HAPPENING IN GAZA IS TERRIBLE, IT IS A TRAGEDY, WE DON'T KNOW HOW MANY HOW MANY LIVES HAVE BEEN LOST AT THIS POINT. WE KNOW HOW MANY ISRAELI LIVES WERE LOST ON OCTOBER 6TH. AND THAT WAS ALSO A HORRIFIC TRAGEDY. BUT IT'S NOT IT DOES NOT YET REACH THE, THE, THE DEFINITION OF GENOCIDE. AND IT'S REALLY OFFENSIVE TO THE MANY ETHNICITIES AND CULTURES IN THE WORLD THAT HAVE SUFFERED FROM GENOCIDE OVER THE LAST 100 OR 200 YEARS. THE UNIVERSITY RELEASED A STATEMENT ABOUT ITS DECISION TO CLEAR THE QUAD THIS MORNING, SAYING VIA THE PRESIDENT, QUOTE, PROTEST IS A STRONGLY PROTECTED FORM OF SPEECH IN THE UCHICAGO CULTURE. BUT SAFETY CONCERNS HAVE MOUNTED OVER THE LAST FEW DAYS AND THE RISKS WERE INCREASING TOO RAPIDLY FOR THE STATUS QUO TO HOLD. THESE STUDENT PROTEST ARE DEMANDING THAT THE UNIVERSITY DISINVEST ITSELF OF ANY INVESTMENTS IT MAY HAVE IN ISRAEL, OR ARMAMENT COMPANIES SUPPLYING THE WAR, IT'S UNCLEAR AT THIS POINT WHETHER THEY ARE GOING TO RECONVENE HERE ON THE QUAD AT ANY POINT TODAY. SOME OF THE STUDENTS SAYING THEY AND THEY'VE MADE THEIR POINT FOR
