This article shows live updates and coverage of the now-demolished encampment on Trotter Lawn. Older posts may not accurately reflect present information or conditions.
⟡ 12:00 a.m. 5/5/2025
Below is an abbreviated summary of the four-day encampment on Trotter Lawn, which ended in arrests by law enforcement Saturday morning. The events described below, as well as their lead-up and aftermath, will soon be the subject of further coverage by The Phoenix.
The encampment started in the afternoon on Wednesday, April 30 by Swarthmore’s Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) on Trotter Lawn and ended shortly after 8 a.m. on Saturday with nine arrests by local law enforcement. Those arrested included one Swarthmore student, one former Swarthmore student, and seven individuals unaffiliated with Swarthmore. The college chose to call law enforcement after multiple verbal and written warnings to end the encampment or face charges for violating the Code of Conduct, which did not result in the protesters dispersing. Both students affiliated with Swarthmore who were arrested face immediate interim suspensions.
The Phoenix has provided live updates, found below, since the protest began. In an email to the campus community on Wednesday afternoon, Swarthmore SJP articulated their demands, including that the college “divest entirely from all companies that profit from the Zionist entity’s occupation of Historic Palestine” and “commit to materially protecting its vulnerable community members.” Shortly after the encampment was erected, protesters received two letters from Vice President for Student Affairs Stephanie Ives warning that those who remained in the encampment would face interim suspensions.
On Thursday morning, Public Safety and Facilities staff began removing lawn chairs and wood pallets that had been moved into the encampment and painted with graffiti that President Val Smith later condemned in an email as “abhorrent statements celebrating violence and promoting hate.” Around 6:30 p.m., the Swarthmore Police Department issued trespassing notices to everyone at the encampment, referencing Pennsylvania criminal trespassing law 3503(b) for “defiant trespasser.” Over the next few days, the college issued additional suspensions, resulting in seven total suspensions before the arrests on Saturday morning.
The students given interim suspensions were forced to leave campus. These departures from the encampment, combined with a much smaller turnout than last spring’s encampment and repeated social media messages from Swarthmore SJP calling for others to join, all contributed to the large ratio of outside protesters to Swarthmore students on Trotter Lawn at the time of arrests. President Smith has since written several times that the social media messages in particular drew the FBI’s attention to the encampment.
Friday evening, after an “emergency faculty briefing,” two plans were set in motion: 1) an ultimatum for the encampment to disperse by 11 p.m. or have the college call local law enforcement despite many faculty members’ concerns, and 2) an “off-ramp” coordinated by a group of faculty, including acting provost Kathleen Howard, that offered less severe sanctions for students who left the encampment before the deadline than they might otherwise receive. Swarthmore President Val Smith moved the deadline for dispersal from its original 11 p.m. time first to midnight and then again to 1 a.m. Some faculty members told The Phoenix they were attempting to lobby for a change in the administration’s response late into the evening.
At around 7:45 a.m. on Saturday morning, over 30 police officers from eight nearby police departments in Delaware County arrived at the scene, led by the Delaware County Sheriff’s Office. Senior college administrators went into the encampment and addressed the protesters. The officers were directed to wait until 8 a.m. before moving in to arrest protesters and dismantle the encampment, giving protesters about ten minutes to leave to avoid arrest. Following the arrests, protesters were taken to the Swarthmore Police Department on Park Avenue for processing before being transferred to the Media Borough Police Department. A crowd, including faculty and SJP members, gathered in the department’s parking lot for many hours while the protesters were taken one by one inside the station for further processing before being released. Photos posted to the SJP Instagram show injuries, including bruising and bleeding, allegedly inflicted by the police’s methods of restraining and removing protestors.
The news of the encampment has drawn attention from the ongoing network problems the college has faced since Thursday. Chief Information Technology Officer Jason Parkhill wrote at the time that, “Based on the information available to us now, we believe this is an intentional cyber act targeting the College.” The source of the attack is still unclear.
—Ella Walker
Courtesy of Zack Kreines Courtesy of Zack Kreines Courtesy of Zack Kreines Courtesy of Zack Kreines Courtesy of Zack Kreines Photo courtesy James Shelton / Swarthmore Phoenix Photo courtesy James Shelton / Swarthmore Phoenix 
Photo courtesy James Shelton / Swarthmore Phoenix 
Photo courtesy James Shelton / Swarthmore Phoenix Photo courtesy James Shelton / Swarthmore Phoenix Photo courtesy James Shelton / Swarthmore Phoenix
⟡Live 3:00 p.m. 5/4/2025
Early this afternoon, in an email to the student body and and a post on Instagram, Swarthmore’s chapter of SJP condemned yesterday’s arrests and posted documentation of injuries allegedly sustained at the hands of police.
—Melanie Zelle
⟡Live 12:15 a.m. 5/4/2025
The Guardian’s coverage has been amended. It is now consistent with seven notices being issued before arrests were made and two being issued after, for a total of nine suspensions.
—Melanie Zelle
⟡Live 11:00 p.m. 5/3/2025
The Guardian has reported that nine students have been suspended. Their coverage suggests that nine students had already been issued interim suspensions before the arrests were made.
The Phoenix was aware of seven total suspensions before arrests were made.
In Val Smith’s letter to the college, she wrote that the two arrested students affiliated with Swarthmore College “will be placed on immediate interim suspension.”
The Phoenix is working to obtain a definitive total number of suspensions issued from the college, as well as a timeline for when these suspensions occurred.
—Melanie Zelle
⟡Live 1:53 p.m. 5/3/2025
After a review of footage and photos taken throughout the day, The Phoenix has been able to confirm the following law enforcement agencies were in attendance in Swarthmore during the period of the arrests: the Delaware County Sheriff’s office, Swarthmore Police, Nether Providence Police, Radnor Police, Springfield Township Police, Marple Township Police, Folcroft Police, and Morton Police.
—Melanie Zelle
⟡Live 12:17 p.m. 5/3/2025
In Val Smith’s email to the community, she stated that “approximately 25 police officers” arrived on campus. This is somewhat misleading, The Phoenix has video showing at least thirty-one uniformed members of police, including one wearing a face covering, approaching the encampment to dismantle it.
—Melanie Zelle
⟡Live 12:11 p.m. 5/3/2025
The Phoenix spoke to the mother of an arrested Swarthmore student who said that even after calling, the college provided no information to her as to the location of her child. She described first visiting the Swarthmore Police Department but finding it empty, and ultimately being told to resort to calling 911 to obtain the location of her child.
—Melanie Zelle and Daniel Perrin
⟡Live 12:02 p.m. 5/3/2025
An arrested protester, now released, who described themself as a “former student of Swarthmore” described in an interview to The Phoenix their experience of arrest, which they characterized as violent. They said that despite their cooperation with their arrest, the police threw them to the ground and pinned their arm while demanding they not resist. They also reported that while being carried, and at one point almost dropped on the sidewalk by police, they were also threatened. “If I didn’t get on my feet [police said] that my head would hit the curb or the door of the paddywaggon,” they said.
The Phoenix has confirmed that all nine arrested protesters have now been released from the Media Borough Police Department.
—Daniel Perrin and Melanie Zelle
⟡Live 11:14 a.m. 5/3/2025
In an email to the community President Val Smith stated that one current Swarthmore student and one former Swarthmore student were among those arrested.
President Smith’s email can be found here.
—Melanie Zelle
⟡Live 10:51 a.m. 5/3/2025
The Phoenix has confirmed that Swarthmore students were among those arrested.
A protester that was arrested, now released, told The Phoenix that they identified Vice President for Student Affairs Stephanie Ives inside of the Swarthmore police station’s interview room.
—Daniel Perrin and Melanie Zelle
⟡Live 10:16 a.m. 5/3/2025
According to numerous sources, including faculty members, the majority of those arrested this morning were not affiliated with Swarthmore College.
—Daniel Perrin and Melanie Zelle
⟡Live 10:00 a.m. 5/3/2025
Andy Hirsch has amended the college’s count of those arrested to nine, the same number reported by SJP.
—Daniel Perrin and Melanie Zelle
Correction: A previous version of the 9:17 live update mistakenly stated that Andy Hirsch indicated eight “students” had been arrested. In fact, he indicated eight protesters have been arrested. The Phoenix is working to verify the number of students arrested and regrets this error.
⟡Live 9:17 a.m. 5/3/2025
In an email to The Phoenix, Vice President for Communication Andy Hirsch indicated that eight protesters have been arrested, one fewer than the number SJP posted on their Instagram. He noted all will be charged with misdemeanor trespassing, and “processed and released on their own accord,” so long as they provided identification to police.
—Melanie Zelle
⟡Live 9:11 a.m. 5/3/2025
A SwatAlert has been released, giving some insight into an otherwise silent college’s reasoning behind the arrests. The alert asserts the college had “no choice” given a growing presence of protestors unaffiliated with the college, warnings from law enforcement, and no signs that protestors “were willing to engage in conversation to bring the encampment to an end.”
“As painful as this moment is the hope is that it can also serve as an inflection point—a chance to return to the principles that have long defined the College community.”
—Melanie Zelle and Lucy Tobier
⟡Live 9:03 a.m. 5/3/2025
Exactly after 8:00 a.m. police from the Delaware County Sheriffs Department entered the encampment. They arrested all protestors still inside, who linked arms but did not otherwise make moves to resist. Sheriffs then disassembled the encampment, removing tents and signs.
Nine protestors were arrested, according to SJP. While unconfirmed, students gathered to watch the sweep indicated many who were arrested were unfamiliar to them and likely not Swarthmore students.
Professor of Engineering Matt Zucker, one of the faculty observers in attendance, said he was still processing the morning’s events.
“I’ve never seen police arrest students on campus before,” he said.
—Melanie Zelle
⟡Live 7:45 a.m. 5/3/2025
Delaware County Sheriffs, Phoenix Staff and numerous faculty observers are on the scene. A large number of students are also gathered watching the scene unfold.
Sheriffs have indicated they will move in for arrests at 8:00.
—Melanie Zelle
Correction: We’ve removed live posts from earlier in the evening about the existence of an update published in the student newsletter Voices as The Phoenix has received new and more accurate information in the time since.
⟡Live 11:57 p.m. 5/2/2025
The Phoenix has received a note from faculty saying that Swarthmore President Val Smith has extended the deadline for the encampment to disperse to 1 a.m., an hour later than the earlier midnight deadline.
—Daniel Perrin
⟡Live 11:54 p.m. 5/2/2025
A faculty source has confirmed to The Phoenix that faculty were told in the emergency faculty meeting this afternoon that the encampment must disperse by 12:00 am or law enforcement will be called.
The Phoenix also obtained an email from acting provost Kathleen Howard writing that she and several faculty members have coordinated an “off ramp” for students should they leave before 12:00 a.m. The “off ramp” is described as follows in the email:
“This is the “off ramp” offer for less serious sanctions if they leave by midnight:
Seniors – will receive interim suspensions through alumni weekend and then they can get their degree (assuming faculty allow)
Underclassmen – will receive interim suspensions and then have a regular judicial process; agreement to dismantle could be a positive miti [sic] have an expedited CJC over summer so as to not interrupt their fall return;
Anyone who stays risks expulsion (which is a possible sanction regardless)”
—Daniel Perrin
⟡Live 4:50 p.m. 5/2/2025
An emergency faculty meeting has been called to discuss the ongoing encampment.
Swarthmore SJP’s Instagram reports that four more interim suspensions have been issued.
Yard signs printed with the notice of trespass distributed to protesters yesterday have been placed in the ground around the encampment on Trotter Lawn.
Swarthmore College has yet to respond to the vast majority of The Phoenix’s questions and requests for comment. Multiple phone calls have been made over the past few days to the offices of various members of the communications staff, but none have been answered or returned. Yesterday, Vice President for Communications Andy Hirsch emailed The Phoenix to clarify that drones seen at the encampment were unaffiliated with Public Safety.
—Melanie Zelle
⟡Live 8:00 p.m. 5/1/2025
The FBI has urged Swarthmore College to bring the encampment to an end “as quickly as possible,” according to an email from President Val Smith sent to the Swarthmore community. The email also declared that “should [protesters] continue to fail to disperse, we will have no choice but to escalate our response.” While the email does not explicitly mention the threat of arrest, it made reference to notices given to members of the encampment which indicated they would be arrested if they did not disband.
Smith expressed concern over the promotion of the encampment by SJP on social media encouraging outside allies to join the protest on campus. According to the email, it is these posts that have drawn the attention of outside law enforcement. She also condemned the content of graffiti written on the “Big Chair.”
—Ella Walker and Melanie Zelle
⟡Live 6:30 p.m. 5/1/2025
A letter handed out by Public Safety and the Swarthmore Police Department notified protestors that they were trespassing on college property and must leave the encampment immediately. If the protestors fail to comply, they will be arrested under Criminal Trespass Title 18. Protestors continued chanting and do not appear to be leaving.
—Ella Walker
⟡Live 2:35 p.m. 5/1/2025
Two students from the encampment alerted The Phoenix that they had received a letter informing them of their interim suspension, effective immediately. The letter cited multiple violations against the code of conduct, including disorderly conduct, failure to comply, unauthorized use of college property, and failure to disperse.
The letter stated that both students were not allowed on campus without prior permission from this point forward. Both students are FLI (First-Gen/Low-Income). The college will accept requests to reconsider the interim suspension within two days.
—Ella Walker
⟡Live 1:20 p.m. 5/1/2025
The morning has seen developments in but no resolution to the ongoing encampment on Trotter Lawn. Around 8:00 a.m., Pubsafe and Facilities staff began removing chairs and pallets from the encampment, including the “Big Chair,” which had been vandalized by the protesters. They also cut the rope which surrounded the encampment, and closed access to the Rose Garden. The roadblock on the Cedar Lane entrance to the college remains, and PubSafe vehicles are still present at the other entrances but appear to be allowing some vehicle traffic in. Facilities staff also removed chairs, benches and all other seating from Kohlberg Courtyard, Trotter Lawn and Parrish Lawn.
During confrontations with students, PubSafe officers recorded close up video of numerous protesters in attendance, as well as a credentialed Phoenix press photographer.
Around 10:00 a.m. a news helicopter was seen circling the encampment, according to online flight radar it belonged to 6abc news.
Encampment members said they still had not received notices of suspension or any other communication from the college.
The encampment was covered by the Inquirer last night, as well as in a brief by Democracy Now this morning. Around 11:30 a.m., a local CBS affiliate also visited the encampment to interview protestors.
Swarthmore College has yet to respond to numerous requests for comment made by The Phoenix throughout the day yesterday. Phone calls to listed numbers for a variety of relevant Swarthmore offices have gone unanswered, but it was unclear if this was the result of an internet outage affecting campus.
A SwatAlert sent to the college indicated that the outage may be due to an intentional cyberattack targeting the college. The Phoenix is not aware of any evidence to suggesting the outage has a relationship to the ongoing encampment.
—Melanie Zelle and Ella Walker
Correction: This article was edited to better reflect Interim Public Safety Director Colin Quinn’s title. Additionally, a previous version of this article referred to Cisco as an internet service provider. Cisco manufactures networking hardware and sells VPN software but is not in fact an internet service provider.
Around 12 p.m. on April 30, members of Swarthmore’s Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and their supporters erected an encampment on Trotter Lawn dubbed the “Hossam Shabat Liberated Zone,” after a university student and journalist from Gaza killed in an airstrike. SJP released a list of demands concurrently on Instagram and in an email to the student body. The first segment of demands asks for divestment from “all companies that profit from the Zionist entity’s occupation of Historic Palestine,” beginning with the end to purchases from the network provider Cisco. Other components include the publication of all endowment investments and a formal recognition of “scholasticide,” the mass destruction of education, in Gaza.
While similar in structure to the demands publicized by the SJP encampment last spring, the inclusion of specific companies marks a change, as does the absence of a demand for amnesty or other protections for past and present student protesters. The second segment of demands reflects current concerns over shifting national policies. SJP called for a commitment from the college to not cooperate with federal law enforcement action under any circumstances or pressure, to publicly condemn Trump’s attack on immigrants, and to fund the legal defenses of students facing deportation.
Members of the encampment also drew attention to the naming of Trotter Hall and the lawn in front of it. In 2022, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that two Swarthmore professors were involved in the excavation of Lenape gravesites, among them professor Spencer Trotter. Trotter also published numerous works endorsing a pseudoscientific racial hierarchy. President Val Smith subsequently emailed the community announcing an investigation into the matter and the following year announced that the college had plans to “develop a process to reexamine the name of Trotter Hall.” Two years later, the name has yet to be altered.
Members of the Swarthmore Police Department and Springfield Police Department appeared at moments to survey the encampment and were seen engaged in lengthy conversations with Public Safety and Facilities members. Among those gathered were Associate Vice President for Campus Services Anthony Coschignano and Interim Director of Public Safety Colin Quinn.
An email from Vice President of Student Affairs Stephanie Ives was printed and distributed to protesters at around 2:15 p.m., informing those at the encampment that their occupation of Trotter Lawn violated the Code of Conduct. The letter cited the code: “Encampments on and occupation of any College facilities, spaces or grounds is prohibited.”
This particular prohibition on encampments, as well as the ability for the school to use interim suspensions as a sanction, were both added as part of controversial alterations to the Code of Conduct made before the 2024-2025 school year. Ives has personally defended many of these changes in statements that suggest a break from the school’s past philosophy towards student protest.
Ives noted that neither of the code prohibitions pertain to the content of the speech being promoted at the protest. She also raised concerns about SJP, while still on interim suspension, collaborating with non-Swarthmore-affiliated organizations.
Additionally, she raised the concern over protestors using masks to hide their identities. “This current protest strategy will not result in dialogue with the college about your demands,” she wrote. She also wrote that many students have already been identified.
The letter instructed protestors to leave the lawn before 4:00 p.m. or face interim suspension, which includes the loss of academic privileges and the loss of access to all campus services.
However, 4:00 p.m. passed, and no actions were taken to remove students from the encampment. Shortly after 5:00 p.m., another email letter from Ives was distributed. Ives restated the college’s original request to leave Trotter lawn: “You have failed to comply.”
The letter continued, “We have heard your demands and do not intend to meet them.” Ives wrote that the college is considering all options to bring the encampment to a peaceful end while working to issue interim suspensions to those who were warned and remain in the encampment, including students who are just now entering. Further findings could lead to more severe sanctions for students who have already received a sanction for prior misconduct.
Around 7:00 p.m., protestors moved the “Big Chair” on Trotter lawn to the encampment, cementing the protest on the lawn as students prepared to sleep in tents overnight.
After assisting Ives in delivering the letter, Coschignano moved several lawn chairs used by protesters outside of the bounds of the encampment.
However, at 9:00 p.m., students at the encampment indicated to The Phoenix that they had yet to receive any emails notifying them of suspension, and had not received any communication from the school relating to the encampment since the second letter from Ives.
An email from President Val Smith sent to the college community at 7:40 p.m. reiterated the college’s oft-repeated position that announced disciplinary action in no way “pertains to the content of the speech being promoted at the protest.”
Swarthmore College clarified that the entrances at the school were closed to vehicular traffic in an email to The Phoenix, but did not otherwise respond to numerous requests for comment on matters including the college’s planned response, its stated unwillingness to accept the protesters demands, and the impact of potential sanctions on students’ ability to graduate.
“Ives noted that neither of the code prohibitions pertain to the content of the speech being promoted at the protest. She also raised concerns about SJP, while still on interim suspension, collaborating with non-Swarthmore-affiliated organizations.”
Interesting, but why are Swarthmore admins collaborating with Springfield PD? That sounds like a non-Swarthmore-affiliated organization to me.
“Additionally, she raised the concern over protestors using masks to hide their identities.”
A very Trumpian concern.
The protestors hiding their faces behind scarves remind me very much of the terrorists in Munich in 1972, who invaded the Olympic Village and killed the Israeli athletes. Not a good look if one is trying to engender sympathy from the target audience. I hope the College takes the most draconian measures available and rids our beautiful campus of these miscreants forever.
It doesn’t remind me of terrorists because no one involved in this is invading an Olympic Village or killing anyone. They’re occupying a lawn and protesting genocide. They’re not terrorists. You and Trump are on the same side on this issue.
How do you feel about what they’re protesting? Do you have a problem with scholasticide? Or are you more of a Fox News type who would rather talk about masks and scarves than issues?
They are protesting nothing. What they are doing is glorifying the destruction of Israel and the elimination of Jews. They wrote it all over the Big Chair.
Are you denying that Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza right now?
Because you can just go look it up: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaza_genocide
It’s not just me and campus protestors saying that. It’s the UN, Amnesty International, The Quaker-founded American Friends Service Committee, Jewish Voice for Peace, Ireland, Mexico, and countless others.
So you can deny an ongoing genocide if you want, but doing so will not sway decent people.
Are you denying the slaughter of innocent Israelis? Are you denying there are hostages, including Americans, being held underground in Gaza? Are you denying that Israel, on a daily basis, is attacked by neighboring countries with bombs? Are you denying that Hamas, Houthis and Hezbollah seek to destroy Israel and the United States? There is no genocide in Gaza, there is a war started by Hamas. The UN and Amnesty International are corrupt and biased. JVP does not speak for the majority of Jews. Shouting at the Swarthmore administration and asking for impunity for students (adults not innocent kids) who are breaking the code of conduct does nothing for nobody.
Palestinianism is an ideology to keep people in perpetual victimhood by terrorists who enrich themselves with charity from gullible western lefties.
Check you sources, Ben.
so because I disagree with what I see happening on the campus I love, I must be a Fox News watcher? Or a Trumper? Is that the kind of logic Swarthmore is teaching these days?
And you were not likely around in 1972, so you are not competent to opine on what it felt like to be a Jew watching terrorists murder fellow Jews for no reason.
These SJP protestors are wearing the same face coverings and carrying the same hatred in their hearts as the terrorists in Munich. Of that much I am certain and that was my point.
I said you and Trump are in agreement on the issue of campus protestors wearing masks. You are. That’s a fact. I’m not in agreement with you and Trump on this. I didn’t say you were a Trumper.
I said you were a Fox News type who would rather discuss scarves and masks than issues, not that you are a Fox News viewer. It’s just that your argument tactics and beliefs around this issue are indistinguishable from theirs. And I see that I’m right. You refuse to answer any questions about the issues at hand, which include genocide and apartheid. Do you want to discuss the issues the protestors are protesting about or are you just here to express your displeasure about their masks and head wear?
As for your certainty, I’m seeing multiple KN95 masks in those images, and KN95 masks did not exist in 1972. What I see is protestors wearing things such as a Philadelphia Eagles jacket, bucket hats, adjustable ball caps, KN95 masks, sunglasses, and keffiyehs. All very normal accessories. If they had submachine guns and bandoliers, you might be onto something. But they don’t. Because they’re protestors, not terrorists.
Furthermore, when I search up images of the Munich Massacre, I see no images that look like these protestors.
Despite all of this, you have concluded they have the same “hatred in their hearts” as terrorists. That is quite prejudicial and truly a reach to say about people protesting genocide, which you don’t seem to want to even acknowledge. Israel is perpetrating genocide on Gazans right now, which is why there is a protest to begin with, and you would rather talk about masks and scarves and attribute all of this to hatred in people’s hearts. This is what I mean when I say “Fox News type.” This type of prejudicial outlook and wilful refusal to see the forest for the trees is exactly the modus operandi of the median Fox News viewer.
There is no genocide. There is only a war, started on October 7, 2023 by the people of Gaza, through its elected representatives of Hamas. Israel is well within its rights to defend itself and its citizens. The problem with war is that it can be very ugly; perhaps the people of Gaza should have recognized this before they launched their heinous attack. Would you call that attack justified, Ben (Legendary)? Ask the people of Germany and Japan how starting a war worked out for them? Not well, of course. Next, you’ll be accusing the US of genocide as well. Good luck in your studies. I don’t know what they’re teaching you there these days, but I submit it leaves a lot to be desired.
I see. So, just like the other guy who has all these problems with protestors, you also deny the genocide in Gaza. Go figure.
As for the US, it was founded on genocide.
Good luck to you in your studies, too.
Swarthmore College is a jihadist outpost.
Yes. Sadly it has been so for many years. The student body, faculty and administration have been systematically and intentionally infiltrated over time.
That’s quite an assertion. Who in the administration is a jihadist, and what evidence do you have to support this?
“Ives noted that neither of the code prohibitions pertain to the content of the speech being promoted at the protest.”
“An email from President Val Smith sent to the college community at 7:40 p.m. reiterated the college’s oft-repeated position that announced disciplinary action in no way “pertains to the content of the speech being promoted at the protest.””
“Smith expressed concern over the promotion of the encampment by SJP on social media encouraging outside allies to join the protest on campus. According to the email, it is these posts that have drawn the attention of outside law enforcement. She also condemned the content of graffiti written on the “Big Chair.””
Admins might want to workshop this a little more. Because it sure seems like they have a problem with the content despite saying this is not about the content. I encourage admins to just say what they believe.
As an editorial matter, why does it matter that an offending protesters is FLI – first generation, low income? Why is that information included? Do they get special dispensation, I.e., no consequences for their actions? Talk about the soft bigotry of low expectations.
Additionally, some of the protestors hiding their faces behind scarves remind me very much of the terrorists in Munich in 1972, who invaded the Olympic Village and killed the Israeli athletes. Not a good look if one is trying to engender sympathy from the target audience.
I hope the College takes the most draconian measures available and rids our beautiful campus of these miscreants forever.
Hi Barry,
As the journalist who included that detail in the update, I am writing to let you know that the context of the student being FLI was included because of the consequences of a suspension. For a student with fewer resources, the consequences, such as being barred from college property, could result in a low-income student being left without housing.
Never kick a gift horse in the mouth.
perhaps the FLI student should have considered the consequences of their actions before committing them. That is what a mature person would do. As a (former) attorney I know that the law does not take so called FLI status into account when dispensing justice, nor should Swarthmore. Perhaps the FLI student should take into account the extraordinary opportunity that has been presented to them by virtue of being a Swarthmore student and act accordingly.
They are acting accordingly. There is no better way to leverage your opportunities in life than to stand up for justice for those who have never been afforded such opportunities.
They have their rights. Swarthmore also has its rights – to suspend or expel people who can’t live in a community and under the rules that apply to everyone.
Judging from the photo included in this article, the graffiti on the big chair includes:
–“bomb Tel Aviv”
–“<3 Hamas, Houthis, Hezbollah"
–upsidedown triangles, which Hamas and Hamas supporters use to mark targets for violence and harassment
While I am sympathetic to some of the aims of the protest, it is disturbing that the protestors glorify violence and violent groups.
Would you mind sharing the aims of the protest to which you, as someone who is disturbed by the content of the Big Chair graffiti, are sympathetic? According to the article,
“SJP released a list of demands concurrently on Instagram and in an email to the student body. The first segment of demands asks for divestment from “all companies that profit from the Zionist entity’s occupation of Historic Palestine,” beginning with the end to purchases from the network provider Cisco. Other components include the publication of all endowment investments and a formal recognition of “scholasticide,” the mass destruction of education, in Gaza.”
I think it is a good thing when a person can object to specific statements a protestor makes, and not only acknowledge said protestor’s right to believe and express such sentiments, but be able to go as far as supporting or sympathizing with a protestor’s cause, which is why I’m asking.
I’m sympathetic to sharing how the endowment is invested and publishing statements against the destruction of educational institutions in Gaza. I’m agnostic about divestment because I believe shareholder activism would allow us to do more good. (If Swarthmore sells shares in companies that don’t align with our principles, other less scrupulous institutions could buy them at a discount and the companies would continue business as usual. Better to keep the shares and work with other wealthy colleges to push companies to change how they do business, in my view.)
And I agree with your last point, which I understand to be about the importance of viewpoint complexity: It’s important to remember that people may support a mix of things, some of which you agree with and some of which you don’t. Having a nuanced opinion means considering each thing they support on its own merits.
In this case, it seems that at least some of the protestors on campus support nonviolent political action on behalf of Palestinians (e.g., divestment) as well as violent groups that attack civilians (e.g., Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis). I’m sympathetic to the first and disturbed by the second. Standing up for Palestinian life does not require glorifying violence against others. (“Bomb Tel Aviv not children” … there are children in Tel Aviv too.) Doing so is appalling, inconsistent with Swarthmore values, and distracts from the other aims of the protest. That’s the idea I was trying to get across (but didn’t fully develop) in my earlier post.
We’re agreed on endowment transparency. That would be a major improvement, and it’s suspicious that the board is so resistant to disclosing how the endowment is invested. I am also pro-divestment, and I think your rationale that divestment could send share prices down supports divestment as a lever for influence. Because if divestment were to spread and a company continued to lose shareholder value, that could sting and make them reconsider their practices. Corporations are notoriously hard to nudge by any means other than what helps or hurts their own bottom line.
Just saw a local ABC news update on this… Do we know if these individuals are actually Swarthmore students? The person at the end of the ABC News clip refers to Swarthmore as a “university,” which strikes me as an odd mistake and something a Swattie would never say. I’m also surprised by how inarticulate these protestors are. Genuinely curious, are we sure they are affiliated with the college? If they are not part of the College, they should be removed immediately. It creates a danger to the community. I commend President Smith and the actions she’s taken.
The presence of Springfield PD creates a danger to the community. Why aren’t you calling for their removal?
Dozens of people in masks have shown up on campus, invited by SJP. Who knows what their intentions are. Will SJP take responsibility for the outsiders actions? Unlike the poker playing legend Ben, I am a real member of the community and I feel much saver with the PD on campus.
My guess is the protestors’ intentions are to protest Israel’s ongoing genocide of Gazans and pressure Swarthmore to divest from said genocide and acknowledge the ongoing scholasticide that is a component of the genocide. Phoenix coverage indicates that people keep getting interim suspensions for participating in the protest, and has not specified the presence of any outsiders besides various media organizations and police, which implies the protestors are students.
Do you have any opinions about Israel’s genocide of Gazans and whether Swarthmore should divest from this genocide?
Of course they won’t mention all the outsiders showing up. The editors of the Phoenix are friends with many of agitators. Just like they never mentioned SJP kicking in a Deans office door in Parrish hall or how they wished death upon public safety workers children. Which i saw both first hand. And today I watched numerous people wearing face coverings get off the septa train and walk into the rose garden. You really don’t believe it’s only Swarthmore students trespassing on campus?
Just stay in your privileged legacy bubble. You have no idea what’s going on here if your only info is from the Phoenix
I can’t respond because the Phoenix censored comments made about sjp kicking in the deans office door and the awful comments made by sjp toward swarthmore staff. And now they won’t mention that most of the encampment now is outsiders. It is insane that voices and the Phoenix has not mentioned how many outsiders have showed up today. The entire campus community witnessed it,
I don’t for a second believe Swarthmore would tolerate this behavior from students who graffiti <3 KKK. But if it’s <3 Hamas, <3 Hezbollah, Bomb Tel Aviv and Happy October 7th, it’s apparently tolerated behavior with extended deadlines and all sorts of pathetic compromise. Let me be clear to my fellow alums supporting this – SJP is repeatedly endorsing the elimination of Jews. How quickly we have normalized terrorism and pogroms against Jews. Shame on all of you.
Suspension is not enough. Expel these antisemites.
“The Phoenix has video showing at least thirty one uniformed members of police, including one wearing a face covering, approaching the encampment to dismantle it.”
I’m guessing that the admins who were concerned about protestors wearing masks and the genocide deniers here in the comments section who have been up in arms about protestors wearing masks DGAF about a cop showing up in face coverings.
Ha. That’s all you got? One cop in a mask?
The community is happy they are gone.
Just keep playing poker a hundred miles away.
So then you agree or disagree Israel is carrying out a genocide on Gazans and genocide should be protested? We get it that you are a fan of cops. Say what you really believe about Gaza.
The people in Gaza should be able to live fruitful, peaceful, independent lives.
I badly wish the path SJP is taking could help achieve that. But all I see is that they embrace violence.
Equally, I wish the far right in Israel would take a path that could achieve fruitful, peaceful, independent lives in both territories. But all I see it that they embrace violence.
I agree with you. I feel there is a majority in the world that holds this view, but it can be lost in the squabble between deeply entrenched extremists. Now more than ever listening and discourse between a variety of stakeholders is very important. The administration’s reaction to the protesters appears fear based (imagining worse-case scenarios), instead of leading with courage and listening. Why not call on public safety to remove non-Swarthmore students, like they would any other trespasser on campus, and let the students stay? And livestream an open conversation and debate to the whole Swarthmore community? Above all, don’t the SJP students want to be heard instead of summarily dismissed (which calling for police to make arrests is the essence of)?
I find what is happening in Gaza abhorrent. I find antisemitism abhorrent. You want to protest more power to you. Be then there. Done that. But expect to be arrested. Those that participated in the Civil Rights protests knew this. And they weren’t treated anywhere as kindly as these whingers. Own the consequences.
Nobody should have been arrested for protesting for civil rights. Those were unjust arrests. Why tout them as consequences people should own? Are you in favor of people facing unjust punishment?
They wanted to be arrested! They were slapped with a trespassing charge and released. No one is in jail. First they cos-play terrorists professing love to Hamas and then they cos-play victims bc they love to document the drama for IG. Everyone else is trying to study for finals or look forward to graduation.
Unjust punishment? Seriously? These kids weren’t beaten, sprayed with water canons or worse. Dr. King knew what he was facing and faced it with dignity.
Dr. King shouldn’t have ever been arrested. No one should have been arrested for protesting for civil rights. He knew what he was facing and then proceeded to pen a letter, from jail, wherein he wrote the following:
“I MUST make two honest confessions to you, my Christian and Jewish brothers. First, I must confess that over the last few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro’s great stumbling block in the stride toward freedom is not the White Citizens Councillor or the Ku Klux Klanner but the white moderate who is more devoted to order than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says, “I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I can’t agree with your methods of direct action”; who paternalistically feels that he can set the timetable for another man’s freedom; who lives by the myth of time; and who constantly advises the Negro to wait until a “more convenient season.” Shallow understanding from people of
good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will. Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection.”
Truly one of the greatest writers in US history. Do you understand the point he was making? I wonder.
Eight police departments? Wow
When each department may have under a dozen members, it’s not that unusual for them to support each other when dealing with an unknown number of potential offenders.
Alums are organizing!! Email us to reverse the suspensions: reverseswarthmore at Gmail dot com
The most disappointing thing for me reading all these updates above, is the lack of people photographed/reported having open discourse. I wish President Smith and Ives would have walked down to the lawn to meet the protesters, who’d taken off their masks and been ready to receive them. And everyone would talk, even if inside many felt emotionally uncomfortable. That’d be powerful affirmation of Swarthmore’s values — and the fact that our energy matters. Was the context of events from Wednesday onward just anger and fear? Nothing changes through anger and fear, just a repetition of days corresponding to anger and fear.
It sounds to me like open discourse is what was happening inside the encampment, based on the various reports by the Phoenix and Voices (https://swarthmorevoices.com/content-1/2025/4/30/live-hossam-shabat-liberated-zone). Study circles, political education events by abolitionist and anti-imperialist groups, “eating snacks and studying in community with one another.” You know, activities that affirm Swarthmore’s values.
Just speaking for myself here, but I would rather have snacks and learn than call the cops. Surely there must be at least one administrator who likes snacks and would be interested in learning about abolition and anti-imperialism. And what could be better than studying in community with one another? I did that practically everyday when I was slogging through problem sets and it’s one of the S-Tier aspects of the Swarthmore experience.
The administration’s communications to community and the protesters are intellectually weak — and appear to be covering against FBI involvement. They do not appear to have made serious efforts to open discourse. At the same time, I have never been to a study group where all are concealing their identity with scarves and sunglasses. The intention behind this is unknown to me, and does not invite dialogue with outside parties. Additionally, the link you post does not mention the graffiti placed on school property justifying violence.
The administration has been refusing open discourse for years, in response to all topics of student protest. This cannot be pinned on them being afraid of the FBI or the Trump regime, though I’m sure that isn’t helping. And the administration’s stance reflects how the Board of Managers, with it’s non-democratic and unaccountable structure, closed-door decision making, and refusal to be transparent with its endowment investments, has staunchly refused open discourse.
Think about it: people have been calling for renaming Trotter for how long now? The response from the administration? Form a committee (closed discourse), do nothing, say nothing.
Protestors have protested without masks, with masks, in sit-ins, in encampments, marches, chants, songs, strongly worded letters, you name it, for all sorts of causes, and in all cases have been refused open discourse by the administrators for years, if not decades. Student protestors are simply not taken seriously by administrators, even as administrators tout the legacy of student protest from years gone by as a selling point of Swarthmore. Administrators in 2045 (if higher education still exists in 2045) will certainly be bigging up today’s activism the same way administrators today speak highly of the activism of yesteryear.
And the ultimate irony? There wouldn’t even be a need for protest if there were transparency and open dialog from the board and administration to begin with. But there never is, and they remain as opaque as ever, occasionally dropping a buzzword-laden PR statement to the college community. So the protests continue to kick off, the administrators vilify the protestors, and we wash, rinse, and repeat. Only now with the added bonus of FBI monitoring, threats from the Executive Branch, and dozens of police officers showing up to arrest protestors. Nothing pours cold water on the prospect for open discourse faster than one side having the other side arrested.
It’s a bit ironic that you say that the administration has been “refusing open discourse.” What I’m seeing here is that “open discourse” means “doing what you want.” Because there’s been plenty of discourse.
To start with “being transparent with endowment investments” is a buzzword that’s constantly thrown around. But that’s completely wrong. The protesters are constantly told how the endowment is invested, and they ignore it. So I’ll put it here again for you– Swarthmore’s endowment isn’t like, say, Harvard’s, which is managed by, effectively, an in-house hedge fund. Rather, it’s farmed out to a variety of outside managers. To “divest” from anything, a client needs to create outside guidelines for the managers to separate their accounts. That costs money. So the effect of “divestment” would be to pay a bunch of money managers significant fees to avoid investments in certain companies, in an amount of money that the targeted companies literally wouldn’t notice has changed hands. It’s shooting your students’ financial aid and academic programs in the face to do something that no one is going to notice. But I guess that makes activists feel good?
And in this case, it’s worse– you have anonymous encampments that are spraying antisemitic graffiti in public spaces. That’s not some principled stand for anything– it’s hate speech. Which, while protected by the first amendment, is quite unacceptable in respectable settings.
While there’s a whole lot that’s very very wrong with what Israel’s done in response to October 7 (and in its practices beforehand), this idea that the way to solve this problem is to spray antisemitic garbage on the big chair and harangue the trustees unless they go along with your entirely unbaked plan to sacrifice student financial aid at the altar of ham handed symbolism gets at the heart of everything wrong with this activism.
I have divested by clicking a button. A bunch of professional “outside managers” can easily divest from a wide variety of companies. This is reminiscent of excuses used by apartheid apologists in the 1980s, and yet they ultimately were able to piece together the rocket science of not investing in a company. It’s not that complicated.
Secondly, where can I see the transparent endowment investments of Swarthmore College if the objection against the endowment not being transparent is “completely wrong?”
Finally, you say there’s a whole lot that’s “very very wrong” with Israel’s actions since October 7th and before, but that’s a bit nebulous. Do you believe Israel is an apartheid state? Do you believe Israel is currently perpetrating a genocide against Gazans? Do you think there would be something wrong with Swarthmore College recognizing and condemning the scholasticide in Gaza? Or are “genocide,” “apartheid,” and “scholasticide” just buzzwords to you?
Again, that’s completely wrong with respect to how the money management industry works. I’ve worked with clients in this industry my whole career. You do not “just click a button.” Managers accept investments from clients via a management agreement. They don’t have some separate investment portfolio for each client– the client buys a portion of the fund. Managers CAN segregate accounts for particular clients with specific investment guidelines, but that comes with significant extra fees. Your approach here is indicative of the problem with this activism– you speak very confidently about something that you don’t grasp. When you’re told by those that do this for a living that it doesn’t work the way you think, you ignore it. This has been repeated ad nauseam, but it’s constantly ignored. Which is why no one takes these demands seriously at this point.
In terms of Israel, yes, it’s hard to characterize what they’re doing in the West Bank as anything but apartheid. They’ve taken a response to a horrific terror attack and used it to justify a carte blanche campaign to more or less flatten much of a territory. It isn’t a genocide in any reasonable understanding of the term, but the term you use to describe it is more or less irrelevant; it’s bad. Though many of these activist types were also celebrating the October 7 attack, so nothing that they say really merits any weight.
Finally, sure, Swarthmore can go ahead and condemn what Israel’s done. It’s also completely irrelevant. No one outside the four corners of the campus other than its alumni cares what a school of 1500 kids in suburban Philadelphia says about foreign affairs. It might make some activists feel better, but, generally, making activists feel better should not be driving how the college invests its money. There are a lot of ways to approach the issue– vote, call representatives, and yes, protest.
But the issue with these protests is that a significant chunk of the protesters here are very vocal antisemites. And their presence and acceptance pretty much kills any mainstream acceptance of this movement. When they spray paint “Hamas” and “Hezbollah” on the big chair , that’s going to lose 90% of Jews instantly. But I’ve never heard so much as a peep from any of these protesters about how those things do not represent their movement, or any casting out of people that do it. Which I have just a slight inkling explains why Valerie Smith is ready to disband them– having wildly bigoted stuff spray painted on your campus around a protest probably isn’t great, and if someone had, say, spray painted “KKK” on a chair, you’d probably (I hope) tiptoe away from the group doing it. But for some reason, antisemitism is the one form of bigotry that’s just fine and dandy.
I see. So you, too, deny Israel is carrying out a genocide in Gaza. It seems that to a person, everyone who has been up in arms about the behavior of some campus protestors also denies the genocide in Gaza. And why is it only apartheid in the West Bank to you? It’s also very clearly apartheid in Gaza.
As for your professional insight, I wouldn’t hire you to be my money manager I guess. I like to, you know, be able to not invest in things I don’t want to invest in. Be it oil companies or weapons manufacturers. Or perhaps do something evidently more difficult than splitting the atom like liquidating my position in Cisco.
As for your armchair opinions on activism, thanks for sharing. Something doesn’t quite square, though, if it’s supposedly not a big deal for Swarthmore College to condemn the scholasticide in Gaza and yet they won’t do it. Why not? That should be a layup according to you.
Words have meanings. If Israel wanted to carry out a genocide in Gaza, they could’ve wiped it out in a week. Calling everything a genocide isn’t useful. But in the theme of words having meanings– the reason you don’t have apartheid in the Gaza strip is that there aren’t any non-Palestinians living in it. There haven’t been for 20 years, since Israel up and evacuated its settlers from there. Apartheid has a meaning– it’s that you have formally separate systems of law for different groups. Gaza doesn’t have that. Masha Gessen accurately described it as a ghetto. But proper use of terms is really far down the list of things anyone that actually cares about resolving anything should discuss; Israel’s actions not being genocide and Gaza’s state of affairs not being apartheid
As for the second part– it’s not about my corner of the universe. It’s literally how the entire money management industry works. The goal of Swarthmore’s endowment, like literally every single other endowment used to support an operating budget, is to maximize returns to support things like financial aid, the Lang Center, study abroad, and a host of other stuff that students need. Swarthmore has a big enough chunk of assets to invest that it can park its assets with some of the very few money managers that can reliably outperform the market. You see that in the endowment’s growth, which has far exceeded the growth rate of the market. You seem to imagine that Swarthmore has an e-Trade account where it holds stocks and bonds. That’s just entirely inaccurate. Divestment would mean going to its money managers and telling them that you want special investment guidelines that don’t invest in certain companies. That requires extra work on the part of a money manager. They charge fees for that. Those fees directly lower the rate of return of the investment, even assuming that they don’t damage the performance of the portfolio as a whole. What you’re clamoring for when you yell “divest” is for Swarthmore to pay extra fees to money managers so that they can declare that they’re not invested in certain companies that ostensibly enable Israel to do bad stuff. Problem being that those companies don’t notice who owns their equity– they’re public companies. All you’re doing is handing cash to money managers so that you can feel good about yourself. You should recognize why people don’t take that seriously.
Lastly, as for why Swarthmore doesn’t condemn various stuff Israel does, I dunno, you’d have to ask them. If you were interested in, you know, a dialogue instead of ranting about how they need to pay giant fees to money managers while drawing “Hamas” and “Bomb Tel Aviv” all over campus landmarks, they’d probably give you an answer. What I do know is that, as someone who is quite gravely concerned with quite a bit that Israel’s done, but also not gonna be making any common cause with a bunch of people who think Hamas is good and dandy, making sure that both people listening know whether a liberal arts school in suburban Philadelphia has released a strongly worded Instagram post is close to last on the list of priorities.
Great point. Words have meanings. I guess we should let Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the UN in on that secret. “If they wanted to they could genocide Gaza even more than they are doing right now” is hardly a convincing defense.
And I see you ultimately do agree with me that it’s not hard to divest. It might cost money. But that’s how ethical investing works: sometimes you don’t invest in the companies that are destroying the climate, crop dusting entire communities with opioids, or engaging in war profiteering, because you do not want to support those activities. I know it can seem bothersome to some that principles frequently conflict with unfettered capitalism (it sure bothered Reagan in the anti-apartheid years), but it’s in keeping with a respectable ethos that we find balance in this area.
Also, really weird take that you don’t believe that Israel enforces different sets of rules for Gazans vs.non-Gazans. Gazans are walled in and denied freedom of movement. They are subject to Israeli governance by way of military occupation with no ability to participate in Israeli democracy. A number of Gazans working in Israel have been deported to the West Bank, where they didn’t even live before. This is all textbook apartheid.
As to your assertions about the wizardry of Swarthmore’s investment advisors, do you have proof these unknown elite money managers for Swarthmore are actually beating the S&P? You probably don’t because we have zero transparency about the endowment. We have no way of knowing what fraction of its growth is attributable to donations, investments, or simply the benefit of being a 501(c)3.
And how does your logic square with the likes of Brown University and Amherst College having divested from fossil fuels but also beating Swarthmore in endowment growth percentage in the 10-year period between 2013 and 2023? You’re an industry expert. How do Brown, Amherst, and others achieve this? I think it has to do with how it’s actually easy to divest and you’re just out here blowing smoke.
OK, you can argue about what you imagine genocide to mean. It ultimately doesn’t matter. No one’s suggesting that Israel’s campaign is all great and dandy.
And… you still don’t grasp the divestment point. You can get a money manager to do whatever you want if you pay them enough. But that’s at the cost of… your returns. You declare that that’s fine from your perspective. Good to know. But the board’s job is not to take geopolitical positions– it’s to operate the school for the benefit of students. There are lines you draw. But this idea that the line is paying money managers to move funds from one set of public equities to another is completely incoherent to anyone with even a passing grasp of how companies work. To wit– Swarthmore’s got an endowment of ~$2.7B. Cisco (to take an example off the top of my head of a company I’ve heard associated with Israel) has a market cap of ~$225B. It’s daily trade volume is significantly more than the amount of its stock that Swarthmore holds. It quite literally wouldn’t notice if Swarthmore divested. But the money manager that Swarthmore instructed to divest would charge a very measurable amount of fees for managing its account in a way that would remove those companies. Again, entirely useless and performative. You, from your perch on the internet, may think that taking away low income students’ financial aid so you can feel good about yourself is worth it. Those supporting those students’ educations… generally don’t.
And no, again, you don’t grasp what apartheid is. Israel blockades Gaza (along with Egypt though, strangely, activists are silent on trashing Egypt; I wonder why). They don’t maintain settlements. Israelis don’t live there. They don’t have any sovereignty other than controlling all but one checkpoint into the country. Gazans working in Israel are guest workers. They aren’t Israeli citizens subject to Israeli sovereignty. That’s the difference between the West Bank (where Israel maintains settlements) and Gaza (where they haven’t in 20 years).
And yes, Swarthmore’s endowment performance is quite public. Public news sources write about it. They release regular reports. Being a 501(c)(3) has absolutely nothing to do with investment returns. For Brown or Amherst, you’d need to look at how they invest their endowments. Brown I know does hold some securities directly, and committed to sell those over time. Thankfully, that totally saved the planet and nuked Exxon Mobil’s stock price.
But yes, again, you’re a textbook example of why no one takes these people seriously. You don’t grasp much of anything– not the conflict you purport to care about (talking about an “occupation” of Gaza that hasn’t been in place for 20 years), nor how investment of the endowment works. And the activism generally amounts to a mix of wildly antisemitic bullshit like spray painting Hamas on chairs and performative nonsense like yelling “genocide Joe” at Biden.
when i applied to and then enrolled at swat, i truly believed that it was one of the rare institutions that actually cared about social justice. any school can claim to have quaker values and care about the community, yet swat seemed to genuinely embody this commitment. i was proud to be a student and then an alum for this reason.
now, i’m disgusted by what i see. inviting cops on campus to break up a non-violent protest? where does that fit with quaker values or social justice? that’s not to mention all the commenters (who claim affiliation with the school) supporting state violence and making intellectually bankrupt comparisons to terrorists. clearly, the school has failed in its academic and social justice mission.
if this is the kind of message swat wants to send to the world, and the sort of stance it wants to take, then i must change my views and retract all my support. i am ashamed to call myself an alum. the college administration has been an immense disappointment and worked hard to destroy a 150+ year legacy. congrats
As the mother of an alumnus I am disgusted with how weak the administration has been up until now, in response to the actions of these terrorist sympathizers. I would like to see a photo or description of what graffiti was painted on the big chair. I wonder whether the response would have been swifter had the same “protesters “ been clad in white robes and pointed hoods.
the grafitti is visible in one of the photos posted in the article abov. it says “bomb Tel Aviv,” hearts drawn around Hamas, Hezbollah, and Houthis, and also includes inverted triangles (which are target markers for Hamas)
The encampment was named after Hossam Shabat, a young Palestinian journalist killed in Gaza by the IDF in a targeted airstrike.
Days later, nobody is talking about Hossam Shabat. The encampment’s establishment—and Swarthmore’s reaction to it—have become the story.
Surely there are more effective ways than what SJP chose to advocate for a free Palestine—and for an end to this miserable conflict that has claimed tens of thousands of innocent lives.
Please consider reading “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., which I quoted in a previous comment. It may be of use to you in critically analyzing your thoughts about this issue and related issues.
Since you enjoy quoting MLK, how about this one from him 2 weeks before his assassination, “Peace for Israel means security, and we must stand with all our might to protect its right to exist…I see Israel as one of the great outposts of democracy in the world, and a marvelous example of what can be done, how desert land can be transformed into an oasis of brotherhood and democracy. Peace for Israel means security and that security must be a reality.”
Sure, we can play the “quote MLK game.”
“I think for the ultimate peace and security of the situation it will probably be necessary for Israel to give up this conquered territory because to hold on to it will only exacerbate the tensions and deepen the bitterness of the Arabs.”
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2023/11/martin-luther-king-jr-mlk-israel-palestine-1967-video/
You, of course, are an open supporter of white nationalist Islamophobe Douglas Murray and a genocide denier, so you probably don’t agree with this take from MLK. You probably also don’t think Palestinians should get to vote or have full human rights in this democracy: aka you are pro apartheid.
Tell me what you accuse the Jews of, and I will tell you what you are guilty of.
I am very familiar with Dr. King’s letter. Thanks.
Did you understand the point he was making about white moderates? I’m curious what you learned from reading that piece.
According to the Guardian, one of the so-called “outsiders” at the encampment was a Temple University student (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/02/swarthmore-students-suspended-pro-palestinian-camp). Let’s be real; the only place a Temple student is a danger to the Swarthmore community is on a basketball court. Why are people terrified of the likes of Temple students? Masks and scarves? Really? Probably they are wearing masks because they don’t want to be DEPORTED FOR PROTESTING, a Trump policy to quash protest that a lot of the right-wing conspiracy theorists, white nationalists, and genocide deniers among the protest’s detractors probably support. But a decade of fear mongering from Fox News since Ferguson about how dangerous protestors are does not make it true that protestors are dangerous. We have seen time and again that protestors for social justice are, in fact, not dangerous. It’s merely that their ideas are dangerous to bigots, fascists, and reactionaries who are afraid of their own shadows. Or, perhaps, afraid to confront the cognitive dissonance that has stemmed from their own complicity in genocide and racism.
If the masks and scarves are meant as a protection against possible deportation, they are also walls that close down engagement with outside parties. It was pretty clear during COVID how effective masks could be at tamping down spontaneous social interaction between people who didn’t know each other. Did they have the same effect during this protest?
Yes, it’s truly unfortunate that things such as state violence and pandemics disrupt open discourse. If only there were no guns or infectious diseases inhibiting our ability to simply talk to one another. Alas.