Photo: James Rojas/WBZ NewsRadio
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Ten Massachusetts Institute of Technology students were arrested after police cleared a pro-Palestinian encampment on campus early Friday morning.
The students' attorney told supporters outside Cambridge District Court that they are expected to be charged with trespassing and released.
MIT police began dismantling the protest shortly after 4 a.m., taking demonstrators into custody and then removing the tents, flags, and signs that made up the encampment.
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In a statement, MIT president Sally Kornbluth said the encampment was removed at her direction and the ten people arrested were a mix of graduate and undergraduate students. Kornbluth said the individuals had been warned repeatedly to depart or else they would be arrested.
According to Kornbluth, recent escalation "involving outside threats from individuals and groups from both sides" influenced her decision to bring the encampment to an end.
"It was not heading in a direction anyone could call peaceful," Kornbluth said. "And the cost and disruption for the community overall made the situation increasingly untenable. We did not believe we could responsibly allow the encampment to persist."
In the aftermath of Friday morning's police activity, protestors affirmed that while the tents are gone, their message is not going anywhere.
"Encampments are only one form of leverage," graduate student Mohamed told reporters. "The encampments are a symbol of the actual steadfastness of the students that remain here. It's not just about the encampment. The encampment symbolized the unity of this campus, and that they can't break."
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