Two days of pro-Palestinian protests at KU, then resumption of regular schedule

BY: TIM CARPENTER, Kansas Reflector

Students speak of solidarity with victims of Israeli military campaign in Gaza

LAWRENCE — The drum beat of pro-Palestinian sentiment heard for two days on flower-dappled lawns and in academic buildings at the University of Kansas didn’t resume Friday as students apparently turned their attention to immediate challenges of final examinations.

There was no colorful protest banner displayed next to Fraser Hall where demonstrators took up station Wednesday to dramatize objections to the human and infrastructure toll of Israel’s overwhelming military assault on Gaza. The Israeli siege was a response to Hamas’ lethal incursion into border towns in October. On-campus supporters of Israel, who wrapped themselves in the nation’s Star of David flag, also took a day off.

Absent were the unequivocal messages demanding action to “Free Palestine,” “Let Gaza Live,” “End the Occupation” and “Stop the Genocide.” The quest to erect a tent village comparable to centers of protest at campuses elsewhere was thwarted by KU policy forbidding overnight camping. Strong Hall, a campus landmark on Jayhawk Boulevard, no longer served as a magnet for protesters. It reverted to its role as a place of quiet, plodding administrative activity.

It was calm enough that Cole Bruening, a graduate teaching assistant in the Department of Philosophy, brought this dog, Shep, to Wescoe Hall in an attempt to teach the energetic canine to embrace the art of sitting still. He was, of course, aware of student demonstrations about Israel-Gaza fighting, but he chose not to participate.

“I don’t think much about that,” he said. “I know it’s a sensitive subject.”

Members of Students for Justice in Palestine at KU had issued a set of demands, which apparently didn’t warrant a public response from KU administrators.

The protesters, representing students, faculty and staff as well as other Lawrence residents, called for KU to disclose and divest of financial interests in the Israeli government. They issued a plea for KU to stop accepting grants from the U.S. Department of Defense. On Friday, KU announced it ranked fifth nationally among top research universities in the annual survey of military friendly schools.

The last request of demonstrators, who may return to action Monday, was that KU respect their First Amendment rights of free speech and to “grant amnesty” for conduct that might land them in trouble.

‘Twisted thinking’

Republican U.S. Rep. Tracey Mann, of the 1st District stretching from Colorado to Lawrence, said protests on American campuses were being led by “ill-informed mobs who believe that Hamas, a terrorist organization, is good for the people of Gaza.”

“It could not be further from the truth,” he said. “We are watching the rot of of antisemitism stain our American colleges and universities.”

Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach, a Republican and former University of Missouri-Kansas City law professor, said KU shouldn’t side with “antisemitic terrorists” supportive of the Palestinian cause of independence. In a letter distributed by Kobach, he said the Kansas Board of Regents and KU Chancellor Doug Girod should enforce rules and regulations to prevent disruption of the university’s educational mission.

Kobach used fiery rhetoric while asserting Kansas law prohibited KU from meeting demands of “pro-Hamas” protesters. For example, he said, state law forbid the university from making procurement or investment decisions that amounted to a boycott of the government of Israel.

“As is often the case with uninformed, petulant loudmouths,” Kobach said in a rebuke of picketers, “they have not done their research. And their views are reprehensible.”

U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall, a Kansas Republican and graduate of KU’s medical school, said university protests were a glimpse of what would occur if “we let the woke mob win” the presidential campaign between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump in November.

“Joe Biden wants to give refugee status to thousands of Palestinians in Gaza — the same people who shout death to America,” Marshall said. “Why are the university presidents and this president turning their heads away from the violent crimes that are going on? Why is this president wanting to bring in tens of thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands of refugees from Gaza?”

‘Stand with Jewish students’

U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran, a Kansas Republican who earned undergraduate and law degrees at KU, urged U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland and U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona to use their influence to restore order on campuses effectively shut down by antisemitic groups.

“School administrators’ failure to protect Jewish students from discrimination and harassment violates federal law and is grounds for those schools losing access to federal funds,” Moran said. “Espousing support for terrorists such as Hamas violates federal immigration law and is grounds for deportation.”

U.S. Rep. Ron Estes, the Kansas Republican serving the 4th District around Wichita, echoed that sentiment. He said the volume of federal tax dollars funneled to universities and colleges in the United States meant campus administrators had a duty to provide “a safe and secure environment for college students to learn from.”

Rep. Jake LaTurner, the 2nd District Republican who announced he wouldn’t seek reelection in November, said violent antisemitic protests in the United States served interests of Hamas terrorists who “brutally raped, kidnapped and murdered thousands of innocent Israelis on October 7.”

“I stand with Jewish students across the country and fully support our great ally Israel’s right to protect and defend their freedom,” LaTurner said.