Over 60 protesters arrested at University of Massachusetts

Police arrested more than 60 protesters Tuesday night at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

Students and protesters gathered on the university’s south lawn to return to a previously cleared encampment and condemn the Israeli military for taking the Gazan side of Rafah Crossing . Police officers were called because the encampment violated the school’s policies.

Protesters constructed a barricade around the encampment on the university’s south lawn, 22News reported. They said they would not leave until their demands were met, which included divesting from any partnerships with weapons manufacturers.

“A big thing is divesting from war profiteers and divesting from a genocide in general. A big focus has been around Raytheon because it’s such a big weapons contributor to Israel,” Sam Martinez, one of the protesters, told NHPR .

“You guys are not willing to listen at all. We are going to show you our encampment and show you what we can do to ask for a change,” a protester reportedly yelled during the demonstration .

UMass Chancellor Javier Reyes deployed campus police to deconstruct the encampment on Tuesday night. He provided a statement about the demonstration and a previous meeting he had with the group’s leaders.

“Earlier today, members of my leadership team and I met with representatives of the demonstrators who have established an unauthorized encampment on the South Lawn of the Student Union,” Reyes said . “Over more than an hour and a half, we discussed a series of demands ranging from financial divestment to the status of students’ civil court cases following the October 2023 Whitmore arrests. I also assured the student protest leaders that I am actively reviewing the cases submitted for Code of Student Conduct appeals related to the arrests that have come before me as of today.”

He also said that none of the protesters arrested would face criminal charges.

“Additionally, in response to questions from the students at the meeting, my team was able to clarify that there are no criminal cases pending against students arrested in October; all infractions have been reduced to civil penalties,” he noted. “We also agreed to seek clarification on the status of those civil proceedings.”

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Later Tuesday night, videos of the confrontation between police and protesters circulated on social media platforms. One account reported that the university’s Students for Justice in Palestine group claimed that over 130 people had been arrested.

“Wild footage as more arrests happen at UMass Amherst,” a post on X said. “UMass Amherst SJP is claiming over 130 students have been arrested.”