Stanford students who set up a pro-Palestinian protest encampment in White Plaza remained there overnight, despite warnings from university administrators on Friday that they could face suspension or even arrest.
Student activists set up the encampment on Thursday, following a march attended by hundreds of students. Protesters are demanding Stanford divest from companies and other entities supporting Israel’s military action in Gaza, and that it issue a statement condemning Israel and calling for a ceasefire.
So far, Stanford administrators have not said whether the university’s endowment is invested in companies directly linked to Israel.
“The biggest demand is divestment and financial transparency,” said a student activist, who did not want to be identified due to security concerns.
Ahead of the planned protest, Interim Vice Provost for Student Affairs C. Matthew Snipp warned students that overnight camping or use of tents, or other campus disruptions “will result in referrals to the Office of Community Standards (OCS) student conduct process and could also result in arrest if laws are violated.”
Stanford spokesperson Luisa Rapport said the university supports free speech, but “the university will be enforcing its ‘time, place, and manner’ rules,” which sets limits for how and where students can protest.
Students sleeping at the encampment overnight woke to police officers circling around the site, asking for identification. Organizers say that some student protesters have also received personal warning letters from the administration.
The encampment follows an earlier 120-day sit-in at White Plaza — the longest in university history — which ended after police cleared the site in February. Just a few days before that,18 students were issued citations for disrupting the Stanford president’s speech during Family Weekend.
The current encampment also coincides with “Admit Weekend,” an event dedicated to welcoming newly admitted students to the university. It entails orientation sessions and introductions to student life and academic services.
Sophomore Jaeden Clark, a math and race and ethnicity studies double major, spoke at the rally in White Plaza on Thursday calling on more students to join the protest movement.
“I think it’s our duty to come out and show up,” Clark said. “We are inherently complicit in funding a genocide.”