NEW YORK, (PIC)
Rutgers University in the US state of New Jersey agreed to most of the demands of pro-Palestine protesters for dismantling their encampment.
This resolution was achieved through constructive dialogue between the protesting students and the university administration which agreed to 8 out of 10 demands, on the condition of dismantling their encampment.
Among the concessions administrators made were to establish an Arab cultural center on each Rutgers campus, provide more Middle East studies faculty and academic programs and offer amnesty to all pro-Palestinian protesters on campus. The only two demands they did not agree to were full divestment and the termination of a partnership with Tel Aviv University, which will be further discussed in a later meeting.
The demands that were approved by the university are:
-Accepting at least 10 students from Gaza to study at Rutgers University on a full scholarship.
-Providing the necessary resources for Palestinian and Arab students at the Arab Cultural Center in both university buildings.
-Granting a full amnesty to all students, professors, and employees who used their right under Article 1 of the Constitution to demonstrate against the university’s support for Israel.
-Naming Palestine and the Palestinians in all communications related to Israeli attacks on the Palestinians, and for the university president to issue a statement acknowledging the genocide against the Palestinians and its impact on the Palestinian community at the university, and for the university president to push for a ceasefire.
The university agrees to appoint additional professors specializing in Palestinian and Middle Eastern studies, and to discuss establishing a special department for Middle Eastern studies.
-Appointing an administrative supervisor who is acquainted with the culture of Arabs, Palestinians, and Muslims, and who knows how to deal with Islamophobia and racism towards Palestinians.
-Issuing an educational memorandum of understanding that establishes a long-term partnership with Birzeit University.
-Raising the flags of peoples under occupation such as the Palestinian flag and the flag of the Kurds and Kashmiris, in all areas where country flags are raised.
Rutgers University students consider this a positive response from the university administration that can be built upon to achieve the remaining two conditions, especially in light of the fraught circumstances faced by many protests in different parts of the United States.
Rutgers University is considered one of the largest universities in the US state of New Jersey.
