Demonstrators continued gathering on the University of Tennessee at Knoxville campus until around 11:20 p.m. May 3, nearly 90 minutes after UT officials arrived near the Student Union to warn participants of the potential consequences.
At 10 p.m., a state law kicks in against camping on state property, which can result in a felony charge. The gathering, which wavered in size throughout the day, marked day three of pro-Palestine demonstrations against the Israel-Hamas war.
On the night of May 2, nine people were arrested on the campus. Seven were university students, and two of them were community members.
Demonstrators began asking their peers around 9:30 p.m. who wanted to keep going as rain continued to fall May 3. Regardless of their decision for the night, demonstrators have repeatedly said they plan to maintain a presence until UT divests from its assets tied to Israel.
The group moved to public sidewalks as UT officials arrived just before 10 p.m. From the sidewalk near the Student Union, a chant broke out: "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free."
Many Israelis perceive the chant as a threat to destroy the Israeli state, and the concept is incorporated in Hamas’ charter. Many Palestinians perceive it much differently, describing it as an aspirational call for coexistence.
Frank Cuevas, vice chancellor for student life, read a statement warning demonstrators about the Tennessee law. It took until around 11:20 p.m. for demonstrators to mostly disperse. Another demonstration is expected to happen May 4.
Campuses across the country have been hot spots this week for clashes between police and demonstrators, many of whom have supported Palestinians amid the Israel-Hamas war.
Hamas launched a surprise attack from Gaza on Oct 7, 2023. The attackers killed more than 1,100 people, most of them civilians, and took hostage about 205 people. Some people targeted in the attacks have accused Hamas fighters of raping and sexually assaulting some Israelis.
Israel launched a massive counterattack that has claimed the lives of more than 34,500 Palestinians, the Gaza Health Ministry told Reuters on April 30. Palestinian health officials say two-thirds of those killed were women and children.
'Spontaneous study session' gets personal for those with direct ties
On May 3, the Knoxville Police Department and UT Police Department set up a camera across the street from the Student Union at the College of Law, where a demonstration took place the previous day.
Students and community members called the May 3 gathering a "spontaneous study session" and said during the day they were waiting to hear from UT about whether the group needed to leave.
Renee Jubran, 87, who lived through the establishment of Israel and the mass displacement of Palestinian Arabs when she was 11, said she got "goosebumps" watching the community gather together the night of May 3.
“I lived in peace in Palestine," she said, addressing a crowd of roughly 120 people demonstrating. "I had a Jewish neighbor on one side and a Muslim neighbor on the other side. And I’m a Christian. We all have one God, whether you’re Christian or Muslim or Jew."
Mohammed Sakalla wasn't part of the demonstration on the UT campus May 3. But as he walked by that afternoon, Sakalla said he supported those who were gathering.
"I love seeing everyone, all different races come out here. … It just brings warmth to my heart seeing everybody come out here for us and show their support for my family especially," Sakalla told Knox News. "And although I'm not the biggest protester myself, you know, I like to see it."
Sakalla, a junior, studies business analytics and moved to Knoxville a year ago to attend UT, which was of his "dream schools." His mom's side of the family lived in Gaza and was killed during the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.
"I got a call saying that all 42 members of my family has passed away due to three strikes that hit the building that demolished it," Sakalla said. "It was devastating."
By 4:30 p.m. May 3, the number of demonstrators had grown to about 100 people. As rain began to fall, some people began breaking out their ponchos and umbrellas. Demonstrators displayed a Palestinian flag.
University of Tennessee at Knoxville Chancellor Donde Plowman told reporters that morning the university supports free speech, but free speech was not the issue with the demonstrations. Her concern was "the use of property."
"We're going to apply the rules the same way for everyone," Plowman said. "A group cannot decide to just take over this part of the campus and start hanging out there indefinitely, sleeping there. And so we do have state laws about encampment, we have city ordinances, we have universal policy. ...
"We didn't want to have to end up where we were, but I feel like we talked with the students − our team was with them in two or three different meetings. They knew what was going to happen. The people who were arrested chose that. And I think 141 other people left and went home."
UT first-year doctoral student Theodoros Kyriakopoulos, who came to UT in 2018, took part in the demonstrations May 2 and 3.
“I am here because I want the university to disclose any connections it might have with the genocide that is happening right now in Gaza," Kyriakopoulos said. "And I would like it to divest from any connections in might have that support this genocide.
"And also (I’m here) to stand in solidarity with all the other universities and the students that are protesting across the country and the world right now."
Demonstrators in support of Palestine began gathering midday May 3 on the lawn in front of the Student Union on Cumberland Avenue. Three demonstrators arrived around 12:20 p.m., and the group had grown to more than 20 people by 1 p.m. They displayed "Divest now" signs.
At the time, two UT administrators told students they could gather on the sidewalk in front of Cumberland Avenue but not on the walkway or lawn in front of the Student Union.
"This was not the result any of us wanted": That's how University of Tennessee Chancellor Donde Plowman reacted on the morning of May 3 in a statement to faculty members.
"We will continue to engage with all our students to provide support, and we will also continue to enforce the law and university policy for the benefit and protection of everyone in our community," she said in the statement. "We ask that all Volunteers express themselves in ways that respect the rights of others."
The students arrested May 2 will face sanctions under the Student Code of Conduct, Plowman said.
Robert Kelchen is a professor of education and head of the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies at UT. He spoke with NPR’s “Morning Edition” about student protests across the nation, in general, not about the UT protests.
He said students who participate in protests run the risk of falling behind academically. Of course, there's also the risk of getting arrested and potentially kicked out of school. This is heightened for international students studying on educational visas, he said.
College administrators are in a tough place with pressure from demonstrators, donors and state legislators.
“The administration at Columbia (University), and a number of other institutions, is just under an incredible amount of political pressure to end the protests … and there’s concerns about will this repel donors for an Ivy League institution," Kelchen said. "That’s a big piece to think about. And the responses are often pretty aggressive because institutions don’t want things to spiral out of control.”
Attracting the best leaders for these universities may be more difficult going forward, he said.
“A college president can’t solve war in the Middle East, but at least having some sense of dialogue may be useful,” he said. “But also, if you have donors or legislators completely opposed to that strategy, you’re running the risk of losing your job.
“One thing I feel pretty confident out of all of this is it’s going to be really hard to recruit high quality college presidents when they’re stuck in situations where there are no easy solutions.”
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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: University of Tennessee demonstrators remain on campus as darkness falls Friday night
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