PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Pro-Palestinian protesters are camped out on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania for a fifth day, despite Penn officials ordering them to disband or face consequences.
As of Monday morning, tents were still set up on College Green by 34th and Walnut streets. Temple and Drexel students and community activists have joined the Penn encampment, which has expanded since it was established Thursday night.
The encampment itself is a violation of the university’s facilities policies, according to a university-wide message issued on Friday that was signed by interim President Larry Jameson, Provost John Jackson and Senior Executive Vice President Craig Carnaroli.
“We have notified the protestors of their legal and policy violations,” the statement said. “Failure to disband the encampment immediately and to adhere to Penn’s policies will result in sanctions consistent with our due process procedures as they apply to students, faculty, and staff.”
A notice of trespass was also posted by the encampment. The university said protesters crossed the line, as there have been instances of harassment and intimidation. Antisemitic graffiti was also found on the statue on College Green, which is being investigated as a hate crime, officials said.
Penn Hillel, in a statement posted on Instagram over the weekend, said the actions on campus in recent days “have triggered feelings of instability and anxiety in many of our students. No student should feel unwelcome in their own campus home.”
Protest organizers deny claims of harassment and intimidation. They acknowledged the vandalism on the statue but said they moved fast to cover the graffiti until they could powerwash it off.
Protest organizers remained steadfast that they would not move until their three demands of Penn are met: that the university disclose investments, divest from companies that have ties to the Israeli government, and defend the voices of Muslim, Palestinian and Arab students on campus. The movement has taken over many other college campuses across the country.
“I think our demands are clear, and whether they want us here or not, they don’t want to divest. So until they divest, we will stay here,” one student told NBC10.
The university has not commented on any of those demands.
At an unrelated news conference Monday morning, Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner was asked a series of questions about how he would handle the protestors camped out at the University of Pennsylvania and whether he would prosecute them.
"I think we all have to reserve judgment here, wait and see what occurs or does not occur, and figure out, to what extent, on an individual basis, there is a crime there, is probable cause, and it would be just to prosecute it," Krasner said.
He says his office firmly believes in the right to protest — but also understands the importance of academic institutions being able to function and educate. And he told reporters he does not want to make a political statement in either direction.