As Columbia University weighs expelling protesting students currently occupying an academic hall on campus, a fellow Ivy League instution has decided to take a different approach.
Students at Brown University will disband their Gaza Solidarity encampment on Tuesday after the college's highest governing body agreed to vote on divesting from Israel during an upcoming October meeting. Students agreed to clear the university green of tents, personal belongings and trash by 5 p.m., Brown President Christina H. Paxson said, in a document outlining the final terms of the agreement.
"The devastation and loss of life in the Middle East has prompted many to call for meaningful change, while also raising real issues about how best to accomplish this," Paxson wrote.
"I cannot condone the encampment, which was in violation of University policies. Also, I have been concerned about the escalation in inflammatory rhetoric that we have seen recently, and the increase in tensions at campuses across the country. I appreciate the sincere efforts on the part of our students to take steps to prevent further escalation."
The agreement was signed by activists Eli Grossman, Ariela Rosenzweig, Isabella Garo and Mona Malone and university employees Eric S. Estes and Russell C. Carey.
The student activists celebrated the agreement on social media - describing not just as a victory for their own coalition but also for "nationwide movement for divestment from Israel." Among the students who negotiated with the administration were members of the groups Jews for Ceasefire Now, the Brown Divest Coalition and Students for Justice in Palestine.
"Brown administration has conceded to students' demand that divestment would be voted on by the Brown Corporation after years of tireless pressure from the student body, 61 student arrests, an eight day hunger strike, seven days of encampment and countless protests," the Brown Divest Coalition wrote on Instagram.
In addition to agreeing to a vote on divestment, the university agreed that students, faculty and staff would not face retaliation from Brown for their involvement in the encampment. While students will still remain subject to the university's code of student conduct, the disciplinary process will not proceed beyond an initial review meeting. The university will continue to investigate reports of bias, harassment and discrimination.
The university has also agreed to allow five student activists to meet with a group of five members of the Corporation of Brown University, when they are on campus for their May meeting.
"The meeting responds to the students' interest to be heard on the issue of 'divestment from the Israeli occupation of Palestinian Territory,' which was a core demand of their protest action," Paxson wrote.
This agreement comes as tensions continue to escalate at colleges and universities across the United States. In addition to Columbia's threats to expel student activists, more than a thousand students have been arrested in pro-Palestinian demonstrations across more than 10 states.
