ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Pro-Palestine protesters took to the streets in Ann Arbor Wednesday, May 22, less than 24 hours after police broke up the encampment on the University of Michigan Diag.
Background: 4 arrested as University of Michigan kicks pro-Palestinian protesters off campus
The rally made it to the Washtenaw County Courthouse to protest the charges against four people arrested, who could face felony charges. The TAHRIR Coalition, which was responsible for the now-vacated quad encampment, is demanding Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit to not charge them.
More than 100 protesters, led by U-M grad student Jared Eno, brought drums and other noise makers to the courthouse.
“I want the charges dropped because it is completely absurd to be prosecuting people who are standing up to genocide,” Eno said.
Eno believes U-M police prompted the altercations that resulted in Tuesday’s arrests. Detroiter Sammie Lewis, who said she lived in the encampment for 30 days, agrees and believes in the pro-Palestinian position.
“I believe the charges against my comrades here will be dropped if they go through,” Lewis said. “I’m hoping they won’t be followed through on at all and I think we have the power to continue to organize around divestment.”
University of Michigan students set up the encampment at the Diag in late April to pressure the college to cut financial ties with Israel amid the Israel-Hamas war. The university is one of several across the U.S. to establish a long-standing protest calling for the institutions to stop supporting Israel and its ongoing war in Gaza. Tensions over the war have been high on campuses since the fall, but demonstrations spread quickly following an April 18 police crackdown on an encampment at Columbia University. Arrests at campuses have surpassed the 3,000 mark nationwide.
Read: Students protesting on campuses across US ask colleges to cut investments supporting Israel
Protesters were forced to disband the encampment at U-M Tuesday morning as shielded officers made their way into the space and pushed them out. Videos shared online showed people retreating as police appeared to spray an irritant, possibly pepper spray, at protesters.
The University of Michigan Board of Regents said it’s a settled issue, looking to shield the schools’ endowment from political pressure.
The four arrested have been released pending charges. As of Wednesday, none have been filed, but the U-M Division of Public Safety and Security said they will refer charges to the prosecutor’s office at some point.
Police blocked streets as Eno led the march across Ann Arbor and around the courthouse. No one was arrested on Wednesday.
“They throw police to brutalize us and then use the criminal legal system to say we are the violent ones and we should pay a price for that,” Eno said. “That’s totally unacceptable.”
Savit said his office has not received any charges from U-M police, which usually come with recommendations.