Brown University agrees to hold Israel divestment vote after pressure from student protesters

Brown University’s corporate board will vote on a proposal to divest from Israeli interests, the university announced Tuesday, a major victory for student protesters who occupied dozens of college campuses across the country.

Protesters at Brown will destroy their encampment in the center of campus and cease demonstrations by the end of the academic year as part of an agreement reached Tuesday, university President Christina Paxson said.

“The devastation and loss of life in the Middle East has led many to call for significant change, while also raising real questions about how best to achieve this,” Paxson wrote in a statement. “Brown has always prided himself on resolving differences through dialogue, debate and mutual listening.”

“I cannot condone the camp, which violated University policies,” she continued. “Additionally, I have been concerned about the escalation of inflammatory rhetoric we have seen recently and the rise in tensions on campuses across the country. I appreciate the sincere efforts on the part of our students to take steps to prevent further escalation.”

Ivy Leaguer Brown is the most prestigious school to reach an agreement with pro-Palestinian protesters since protest camps against the Israel-Hamas war sprung up on campuses across the country last week.

Brown protesters specifically demanded that the university divest itself of Israeli interests and lobbied the Biden administration to cease military aid to Israel and push for a ceasefire in the war, citing mass civilian casualties in Gaza.

Paxson wrote that a group of five student activists will present their argument for divestment to the university board next month, and the board will vote on the proposal in October. She added that student protesters will not be suspended or expelled for their conduct.

Protest leaders celebrated the agreement as a victory in an declaration Tuesday.

“The Brown administration gave in to student demands that the Corporation vote on divestment after years of relentless pressure from the student body, 61 student arrests, an eight-day hunger strike, and seven days of camping,” the Brown Divest Coalition said in a social media. publish.

“We support the student protesters as they face campus oppression and police brutality, and the people of Palestine as they continue to resist the Israeli occupation,” the group continued. “This victory is not the end of our work, but rather the fuel for it.”

Hundreds of students have been arrested at colleges across the country due to protest camps, some of which have turned into violence between students, counter-protesters and police.

Protests escalated at Columbia University, the first large-scale encampment to attract national political attention, with students moving indoors to occupy an administrative building. University leaders weigh criminal charges as the debate over free speech paralyzes campuses.