by Dezmond Remington
Dozens of students barricaded themselves in Siemens Hall and hundreds more swarmed the UC quad to protest the war in Gaza and to demand Humboldt stop associating with Israeli organizations.
At least one person, local teacher Alice Rose Finen, was arrested by the University Police Department. She was released on Monday night.
The protest started at around 5 p.m. on April 22, when a few protestors showed up to Siemens Hall. They piled chairs and tables up in front of entrances. The five classes being taught in Siemens were evacuated. Police arrived soon after, as did a California Highway Patrol helicopter.
As of publication, the protest is still ongoing. Dozens of students occupy Siemens, and doors have mounds of office furniture blocking them. Though there’s no consensus, they plan on staying until their demands are met or they are forcibly removed. Several occupiers broke into university president Tom Jackson’s office by shattering the window on the door. Siemens Hall is covered in graffiti, as is the outside of the Van Duzer theatre. The American and Californian flags were taken off of the flagpole in front of the library by a man with climbing gear.
For hours, student activists inside Siemens Hall were only a few feet away from the police on the other side of the main entrance on the second floor. Cops showed up from all over Humboldt, including the California Highway Patrol, Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office, and even some officers from as far away as Rio Dell. At one point, police scanner traffic indicated riot control police from Redding were coming to campus, but they never showed up.
Police left at 11 p.m. on April 22, and those inside tore the barricades down. Over 100 students entered the top floor, walked to the end of the hallway, turned around, and left. After that, the protest dwindled to less than 100 people, most of them outside. People played music and barbecued.
The occupation had been generally peaceful, but violence broke out at around 7 p.m. when police tore down the barricade and entered Siemens Hall. A line of law enforcement with riot shields and a crowd of activists crushed together, and a protester inside hit an officer with an empty water jug. At least one officer retaliated by bludgeoning a protester with a baton. Other reports of students being batoned are circulating, but unconfirmed.
The main demands of the protestors are: to end the war in Palestine, for the university to disclose any dealings with Israeli companies or the Israeli government (and end those relationships if they exist), cut all ties with Israeli universities, and for the university to end prosecution of student activists. Many of the same demands student activists all over the nation are demanding at universities such as Columbia and UC Berkeley.
“We’re doing this out of principle and righteous rage for our comrades,” said Casey, one of the protestors who was inside the building before the police left. “We want to make this happen at other universities across the nation.”
Another one of the protestors, who asked to be identified as “Bum,” was one of the first to blockade inside the hall. They decided they would join their friends the day before the protest was planned.
“When the homies started talking, I was like, ‘Yeah, dog,’” Bum said. “It’s time to fight genocide in general. It’s time to stand up with our Indigenous homies. [We’re occupying the building because] trying to dialogue with the oppressors doesn’t work well.”
Cal Poly Humboldt has not responded to a request for comment on its ties to Israeli institutions.
Some of the people at the protest weren’t there to demonstrate. Students thronged the balconies of the Student Activities Center and crowded around the main cluster of activists in front of Siemens Hall to watch the action, many of them on their way home from class. The helicopter hovering overhead attracted many sightseers.
“Nothing ever happens in Arcata,” said Shawn Rogan, a curious student. “It’s novel for a small campus, and [the war in Gaza] is a cause worth protesting.”
One of the biggest concerns the protestors had was the heavy police presence. Before they left, those barricaded inside the building said they would negotiate once the police were gone. One protester blockaded inside who asked that he only be identified as “Joe” said he would stay there until he was fought off by law enforcement.
“I’m going to resist,” Joe said. “If they beat me, they beat me.”
Protestors chanted anti-police slogans at law enforcement to try to get them to leave, and many of them tried to talk some officers into leaving. Communications professor Aaron Donaldson argued with Rio Dell’s Chief of Police Greg Allen and two other officers outside of Siemens Hall for over half an hour. Donaldson attempted to make the case that they could decide to leave. Allen disagreed.
Cal Poly Humboldt has made it clear they want protestors to leave Siemens Hall and to return home. As of April 23, graduation is still planned to happen on May 11.
“The University supports free speech through open dialogue that is respectful and constructive, but will not tolerate endangering people, destroying property, and disrupting campus,” read an alert published on April 23. “As a community, we are committed to keeping our students, staff, and faculty safe and fostering a learning and working environment where the campus community can feel safe, included, and respected.”
