Thousands of students and staff at the University of Minnesota have walked out of their classes and onto campus a day after nine people were arrested attempting to build a pro-Palestinian encampment on campus.
Scholar Nick Estes who teaches at the University of Minnesota joined the student protest for Gaza at Coffman Union, where the new encampment is located.
Posting to X, accompanied with footage from the scene, Estes wrote, "More than a thousand students, faculty, and staff walked out of class today at the U of Minnesota-Twin Cities campus in solidarity with the 9 arrested this morning-7 were students-for trying to setup an anti-genocide encampment. Beautiful. #FreePalestine."
Nine people were arrested at the University of Minnesota on Tuesday when campus police broke up a pro-Palestinian encampment shortly after it was set up. Tents and signs were erected on the Northrop Mall of the Twin Cities campus around 4 a.m. and the cops showed up about two hours later, the Star Tribune reported.
Pro-Palestinian encampments have popped up on multiple college campuses since last week's crackdown on a large encampment on Columbia University's campus in New York City, where police arrested hundreds of protesters, sparking even further tensions. The school recently extended the deadline to allow protesters to leave on thier own before taking "alternative" measures. Columbia has threatened to call the National Guard to assist in the removal of the protesters, but only has the ability to ask for their assistance.
-With reporting from TMX.
