'Leave,' Rutgers Newark Tells Palestine Protesters – 'No,' They Reply

NEWARK, NJ — “We aren’t leaving until our demands are met.” This was the response from students at Rutgers-Newark this week when the administration asked them to take down their tents and end a three-week-long protest on the Israel-Palestine war.

Earlier this month, a coalition of students, faculty and community members set up a “Gaza solidarity camp” in front of Rutgers Law School in Newark, pitching tents and raising Palestinian flags to protest the rising death toll and human suffering that is taking place in the Middle East.

Another pro-Palestine encampment protest recently took place at the Rutgers campus in New Brunswick. Those students agreed to voluntarily end their demonstration without police action or arrests, and Rutgers agreed to meet some of their demands – although tensions ran high at times. See Related: Rutgers Agrees To 8 Demands From Pro-Gaza Protesters

While the protest in New Brunswick ended within a week, the encampment in Newark has endured much longer. See Related: Students Put Up Tents At Rutgers Newark, Protest Israel-Palestine War

Launched on May 1, the demonstration continues as of Wednesday.

Student organizers in Newark have said that although Rutgers ultimately agreed to several of the demands in New Brunswick, two of their main requests – divestment from any company that supports the state of Israel’s war efforts in Palestine, and the termination of Rutgers’ relationship with Tel Aviv University – remain unheeded.

“An agreement to discuss divestment is not an agreement to divest,” organizers have insisted, pledging not to disband the encampment until these two conditions are met.

In addition to the items put forth by their peers in New Brunswick, the protesters at Rutgers-Newark also made several other demands that are specific to the Brick City.

One demand? Offer free tuition and forgive all outstanding student loan debt for all Newark residents. Other demands included providing pro-bono legal services through Rutgers Law School to all Newark residents earning less than $50,000 as a single-family household, offering free health care services to local residents through the Rutgers Medical and Dental Schools, and “reinvesting” in the community by using three university-owned properties to provide free housing.

MOVING FORWARD … OR NOT?

There has been some progress, both sides have noted – including an open dialogue.

In a message to the community on May 2, Rutgers-Newark Chancellor Nancy Cantor advocated that “we need to speak our minds and advocate for our perspectives and it is essential that we do that with basic human empathy and respect for each other — in other words, peacefully.”

“Rutgers-Newark is a place that points with pride to its own history of protest having shaped us into one of the nation’s most diverse universities and the anchor institution in Newark that we are today, joining with many partners to advance racial equity and equitable growth,” Cantor wrote.

“Even as we move fully into final exams recognizing how important it is for us all to avoid disruptions for our students in this culminating phase of their year of hard work, we will continue to safeguard peaceful protest as a fundamental aspect of our institutional identity,” she added.

The Newark Solidarity Coalition has said that talks have been ongoing, which is an “uncommon” situation and an “early win.” But the administration has refused to budge on the divestment and Tel Aviv University demands – an unacceptable response, organizers say.

Since then, the occupation of the Newark campus has continued, with organizers recently sharing a view of the encampment from their perspective via social media (article continues below).

But recent developments may mean that tensions are about to escalate again in the Brick City.

On Tuesday, Senior Vice Chancellor for Public Affairs & Chief of Staff Peter Englot wrote an email to protesters, telling them that they need to pack up their tents and leave.

Englot did not mention a specific deadline to end the protest, or mention potential punitive actions for those who refuse.

The 2024 commencement ceremony at Rutgers Law School is scheduled to take place on Friday at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark.

Englot wrote:

“We have engaged with you in good faith from the outset of your protest three weeks ago to try to address your concerns, so it is disappointing that our good faith is not being reciprocated now with a timely response to our last message to you six days ago, on May 15. Throughout, we have listened with an open mind and have responded earnestly and meaningfully to your concerns. This includes Rutgers’ commitment to assure representation of Newark students in the upcoming meeting between the Endowment Justice Collective, President [Jonathan] Holloway, and the chair of the Joint Committee on Investment. It also includes having offered to collaborate going forward on matters of mutual concern including expansion of our Intercultural Resource Center and housing access and affordability in Newark.”

“While we remain committed to continuing our conversations with you about these matters, we need you to leave now,” Englot continued. “We are preparing for our final, academic year-end events for graduating students and their families, as well as forward-looking events for new students and their families, that include use of New Street Plaza.”

“As we explained in our last written response to your concerns: the commitments we offer are contingent upon the peaceful and immediate conclusion of the encampment,” Englot said.

The message has not landed well with student demonstrators, who have answered with a resounding “no.”

“We have responded to the [administration] and we have let them know that over 35,000 people have been killed in cold blood since October 7,” the Newark Solidarity Coalition charged. “This is why it is impossible for us to ‘leave now.’”

“The gravity and immediacy of the issues we are trying to address by remaining encamped are escaping you,” organizers added.

“Like you, we look forward to the peaceful conclusion of our encampment,” the coalition continued. “We have been sleeping outside in tents for weeks as you have had the privilege of returning to the comfort of your own homes. We miss our family and friends and the lives we hope to get back to at the successful conclusion of these negotiations.”

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