At about 5 a.m. on Thursday, about 50 pro-Palestinian students set up an encampment in University Yard to that would attract hundreds of demonstrators by nightfall.
A statement from University President Ellen Granberg sent around 2 p.m. on Thursday claimed GW Police Department and Metropolitan Police Department officers would require protesters to deconstruct the encampment at 7 p.m., but the setup of more than twenty tents remains intact 17 hours later. At around 2 a.m. and 5:20 a.m. demonstrators left their tents due to increased MPD and GWPD cars and officers near U-Yard, but police did not enter the encampment on either occasion.
The DMV Coalition of Students for Justice in Palestine led the encampment’s installation exactly six months after four members of Students for Justice in Palestine projected messages protesting the war in Gaza — a demonstration that triggered their 90-day suspension in November for Student Code of Conduct violations. Students from GW, George Mason, American, Galludet, Howard, and Georgetown universities, as well as the University of Maryland, College Park and UMD, Baltimore County, organized the demonstration, joining a movement of encampments at more than a dozen universities nationwide.
The coalition’s demands include officials dropping student conduct charges against pro-Palestinian organizations and students; GW protecting pro-Palestinian speech on campus; GW divestment from weapons manufacturers; GW disclosing all endowments and investments; and GW ending all academic partnerships with Israel.
GWPD officers and other University officials like Dean of Students Colette Coleman and Assistant Dean of Student Life Brian Joyce arrived at the encampment early Thursday morning. A University statement issued at 9:50 a.m., hours after the protest began, announced officials’ 7 p.m. deadline for the demonstration to disperse.
GWPD Chief James Tate said GW officials requested students move to Anniversary Park on F Street — a smaller space with mostly concrete ground surrounded by metal fences in a more residential area of campus — because GW Law students were taking final exams, but the demonstration remained in U-Yard.
At 12:07 p.m. more than 120 students, faculty and staff from Georgetown arrived at U-Yard after marching from their campus at about 11:20 a.m., according to The Hoya. They joined the students at the encampment, bringing the demonstrator count to about 200.
A GW Alert sent around 12:10 p.m. announced that the University entered “GWorld Safety Mode,” which locked GWorld readers and required tap access to enter all buildings.
At around 1:30 p.m., GW Law Dean Dayna Bowen Matthew relocated exams to an undisclosed location due to noise concerns from the encampment in U-Yard.
Across the street, representatives of Chabad GW surrounded a small table covered in pens, notebooks and water bottles with the Chabad GW logo starting at around 1:10 p.m. Junior Ari Patinkin, the president of Chabad GW, said the group arrived to help let Jewish students know they are safe.
At around 2:16 p.m., when Granberg and Provost Chris Bracey issued a statement informing community members that officials requested MPD assistance to relocate the encampment, at least 35 MPD vehicles congregated on Constitution Avenue.
By 2:30 p.m., members of the press, including reporters from the BBC, Washington Post and unaffiliated individuals, had circled the encampment.
Protesters sat in the grass around the speakers as a megaphone was passed around the crowd. Among the speakers were a GW alum, a member of the DC Alliance against Racists & Political Repression, a GW faculty member and an 88-year-old Holocaust survivor who said she experienced similar treatment to Palestinians in Gaza by the Nazis.
Around 5 p.m., GW workers placed barricades under the tunnel near Bell Hall, a main exit of U-Yard. The metal barricades did not fully block the paths. Throughout the hour, barricades were scattered across campus, restricting Kogan Plaza and walkway access around the perimeter of the encampment.
The energy at the encampment swelled as a 7 p.m. deadline neared and passed. Chants of “Till you divest, we will not rest” echoed across U-Yard as the demonstration reached its peak around 7 p.m. with an estimated 500 students present. Organizers continued to encourage protesters to stay in the encampment until GW and other universities in the DMV area divest from companies tied to Israel.
As dusk approached, organizers said there wouldn’t be any more speakers, returning to call and response chants with the crowd: “Long live the intifada,” “MPD, KKK, IOF are all the same,” “Free Palestine” and “GWU, you can’t hide, you invest in genocide.”
Several University officials stood in U-Yard throughout the day, but most did not attempt to enter the encampment. Dean of Students Colette Coleman was seen pacing while making a phone call and speaking with members of Chabad. Assistant Dean of Student Life Brian Joyce, Chief Financial Officer Bruno Fernandes and Provost Chris Bracey were also spotted. Granberg, who protesters often denounced in chants, was not present.
At around 8:11 p.m., about 20 students observed Maghrib prayer on prayer mats on the east side of U-Yard. At around 9:58 p.m., about 30 students participated in the night’s Isha prayer on the southwest side of U-Yard.
Organizers set up about 20 tents and demonstrators started to settle down for the night around 12:55 a.m.
At around 2 a.m. and again at around 5:20 a.m., organizers woke up demonstrators and prepared them for potential arrest following an increased presence of police cars and officers. By dawn, officers had not attempted to enter the encampment.
