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Rutgers, Northwestern defend deals with student protesters: 'We had to get the encampment down'
WASHINGTON (AP) — The presidents of Northwestern and Rutgers universities defended their decisions to end pro-Palestinian encampments through negotiations rather than police force, telling a House committee on Thursday that they defused the danger without ceding ground to protesters. “We had to get the encampment down,” Northwestern’s Michael Schill said. “The police solution was not going to be available to us to keep people safe, and also may not be the wisest solution as we’ve seen at other campuses across the country.” Schill and Jonathan Holloway of Rutgers were called before the House Education and the Workforce Committee as part of a series of hearings examining how colleges have responded to allegations of antisemitism. Also testifying was Gene Block, chancellor of the University of California, Los Angeles, which has come under scrutiny for a delayed police response to violence between pro-Palestinian protesters and counterprotesters.
What’s it like to cover your own campus protest?
Tumultuous. Surreal. Demanding. These are just some of the words student journalists use to describe covering campus protests in Southern California this spring. On campuses across the region, protesters have called for an end to Israeli attacks on Gaza and for their schools to divest from companies tied to Israel and weapons manufacturing.
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