Arrests Made At UNH, Dartmouth During Pro-Palestine Protests: Reports

NEW HAMPSHIRE — A strong police presence was deployed to both Dartmouth College and the University of New Hampshire Wednesday night in response to "illegal activity" related to protests of Israel's war in Gaza, state police told New Hampshire Public Radio.

More than 90 people were arrested at the Dartmouth encampment, and "several" more at the University of New Hampshire, for offenses including criminal trespass and resisting arrest, the outlet reported, citing police.

The arrests at Dartmouth seem to have come after a planned "Labor for Liberation Celebration" set to begin at 5 p.m. Wednesday at the Dartmouth green.

The event was organized for participants to "support and learn about the interconnected liberation struggles of Palestinians and workers around the world, including those right here at Dartmouth and in the Upper Valley," according to a flyer shared on social media.

Dr. Shaonta' Allen, an Assistant Professor of Sociology and African and African American Studies at Dartmouth, shared a post on X around 10:09 p.m. that she was on the ground with students and that they were being told "mass arrests will take place in 5 minutes if [they] don’t leave the encampment site."

Another faculty member, Associate Professor of Creative Writing Jeff Sharlet, wrote that "students were holding a genuinely peaceful, inclusive protest" and that "Dartmouth knew they were coming" but still responded "full force" with state police and a state SWAT team.

Those who oppose the protests and condone such a police response point to instances of demonstrations escalating to violence at other college-campus encampments set up across the country to protest civilian deaths as Israel's war in Gaza rages on.

The New Hampshire protest arrests come hours after administrators at the University of California, Los Angeles called police after pro-Palestinian protests gave way to "horiffic acts of violence" involving firecrackers, "irritant sprays," and vandalism, according to The New York Times.

"Violent protest is not protected. Peaceful protest is," President Joe Biden said in a news conference streamed by The Associated Press Thursday. "Vandalism, trespassing, breaking windows, shutting down campuses, forcing the cancellation of classes and graduations — none of this is a peaceful protest."