BLACKSBURG, Va. – UPDATE
In a statement made by Virginia Tech President Tim Sands, the number of those arrested has been updated to 82 protestors.
According to Virginia Tech Police, 53 of the 82 are current Virginia Tech students.
You can read President Sands’ full statement below.
To the Virginia Tech community,
Today I am troubled by the divisions in our community, as we find ourselves faced with challenges and conflicts that are painful, difficult to manage, and nearly impossible to communicate about when emotions are high.
Last night, 82 protesters (largely students) were arrested for trespassing after occupying the Graduate Life Center lawn for three days and repeatedly refusing to comply with university policy and public safety regulations. While I am grateful the incident was resolved peacefully by Virginia Tech Police, I was saddened by the way our officers were treated. I am also deeply disappointed to see members of our community choose uncivil and unlawful behavior over purposeful engagement in difficult conversations and robust debate that should be part of the Virginia Tech experience.
Virginia Tech strongly supports free speech, even when the content of that speech may be disagreeable to some. However, those rights do not extend beyond the point where they interfere with the rights of others, violate our policies, the Code of Virginia, or federal laws and/or create a threat to safety for others.
There have been many opportunities to engage in civil discussions. Since Oct. 7 of last year, I have met with the Students for Peace and Justice in Palestine, the Muslim Student Association, the Middle Eastern and North African Student Association, and Hillel at Virginia Tech. I have met with undergraduate and graduate student leaders, and the Faculty Senate. During the Board of Visitors meeting on April 9, I attempted to engage the masked protestors in conversation, but was shouted down.
Despite my disappointment in the behavior of some, I am heartened by those who are working to bring us together, and the strength of the ties that bind us as a community.
I am proud of our Student Affairs team who help and support our students and listen to their concerns. I am thankful for our strong commitment to our students’ academic success, health and well-being, and experiences that prepare them for future success. I am grateful to those who, in the reality of a divided global landscape, aspire to be part of the solution by giving our students the skills to navigate the world and make it better. And I appreciate those who choose peaceful, respectful protest, and seek to understand others through difficult, yet civil discourse across differences.
Looking toward the end of the semester, as students, faculty, and staff finish their year-end work and we prepare to celebrate the achievements of our graduates at their commencement ceremonies, we must commit to respect others and the continued growth of the campus we call home — a place that is understanding and safe, where all can learn and contribute to the world.
Never has the world needed Hokies more.
Virginia Tech President Tim Sands
At around 4 p.m. Sunday, police slowly started to arrive to observe the protest — officers and Virginia Tech administrators then had a conversation with students at 6:30 p.m. about the Virginia Tech policy. Students told 10 News they said they would come back to discuss at 8:30 p.m. – that never happened.
”Our problem now is the contradiction in their rhetoric about them wanting us to be heard and their reasoning for giving us leeway these past couple days versus what they are doing right now and the approach they are taking right now,” said Emon Green, a fourth-year student.
It wasn’t until 10 p.m. when dozens of campus police swarmed in around asking the protesters to leave – and if they didn’t, they would be arrested.
One student who was arrested Sunday night said they would do it again in a heartbeat.
“100 percent wholeheartedly, this is something we all truly believed in, we would not have put our lives on the line, we would not have sat out there for so long had we not truly believed in this cause. This is something we are fighting for, we continue to fight for it,” said a sophomore at Virginia Tech.
While others were watching the arrest go down.
“It struck a lot of emotions in me. Like I was brought to tears, I don’t know how to explain it, I was just overtaken by emotion and fear,” said Kenzie Johnson, a freshman at Virginia Tech.
ORIGINAL STORY
Virginia Tech has joined the growing list of universities across the country that are calling for the end of the war in Gaza, with dozens of students gathering at the graduate life center lawn in protest.
For the last three days, students and others have remained camped out at a Pro-Palestine Protest Encampment on Virginia Tech’s campus, and late Sunday night, several students were put under arrest and likely charged with trespassing after they refused to leave when instructed to do so by police. A student told 10 News that about 60 people were arrested.
When we asked Fathia Animashuan, a junior at Virginia Tech, what the protest meant to her, she responded with the following:
“I am here because I feel like what’s happening in Gaza is an injustice, and I feel like all the people who are compliant need to be held responsible. There’s no reason why you should be able to see kids dying.”
The protests were peaceful; however, the university told protestors that the gathering violated the university policy and posed a safety risk. In the face of this, students continued to yell that they weren’t leaving and linked arm-to-arm in a human chain, making their voices heard.
Students made their demands clear to Virginia Tech, asking the university to divest from Israel and provide endowment transparency, issue an official statement condemning Israel’s violence against Palestine and the genocidal loss of life and define anti-Palestinian racism and acknowledge the suppression of Palestinian and allied students on campus.
“Our problem now is the contradiction in their rhetoric about them wanting us to be heard and their reasoning for giving us leeway these past couple [of] days versus what they are doing right now and the approach they are taking right now,” said Emon Green, a 4th-year student.
At about 11 p.m., Virginia Tech issued a statement in response to the protests, which can be found in its entirety below:
On Friday morning, protestors began to occupy the lawn of the Graduate Life Center. Virginia Tech officials informed the protestors that the gathering was in violation of University Policy 5000 (University Facilities Usage and Events). Virginia Tech values free speech and the protestors’ right to be heard, but only if the rights of others and public safety can be assured.
Through constant dialogue between university officials, the Virginia Tech Police Department, and protest organizers, we were able to maintain a safe and peaceful environment through much of the weekend.
As Sunday progressed, protestors continued to refuse to comply with policy and took further steps to occupy the lawn of the Graduate Life Center and outdoor spaces next to Squires Student Center. Given these actions by protesters, the university recognized that the situation had the increasing potential to become unsafe.
Those who gathered were advised by university officials to remove their possessions and to disperse voluntarily; those who failed to comply were then approached by Virginia Tech Police and were again asked to leave and advised that anyone who failed to comply would be charged with trespassing, in accordance with Virginia law.
At approximately 10:15 p.m., police approached protesters to ask them to disperse within five minutes. Those who remained were subject to arrest.
In the interest of public safety, the university issued a VT Alerts at approximately 10:15 p.m. asking members of the community to avoid the area.
For the safety and welfare of all students, faculty and staff, Virginia Tech requires that all members of its community comply with all university policies and the Code of Virginia.
Virginia Tech
At about 3:30 a.m., Virginia Tech sent out an alert, urging students to avoid the Graduate Life Center as a police presence remains.
VT Alerts (NRV): Incident at Graduate Life Center has stabilized. Police presence remains. Urgent, avoid area. No further updates unless situation changes.
— Virginia Tech (@virginia_tech) April 29, 2024
On Meet the Press Sunday morning, Senator Tim Kaine spoke about the protests going on across the country, saying, “People have a right to protest and make their views known. And almost, you know, overwhelming percentages of people do that peacefully, but there are those who intimidate or harass others.”
Gov. Glenn Youngkin responded to protests across the U.S. as well with the following statement:
Freedom of expression and peacefully demonstrating is at the heart of our First Amendment, and we must protect it, BUT that does not go to intimidating Jewish students and preventing them from attending class and using annihilation speech to express deeply antisemitic views. Therefore, I have been working with our Attorney General Jason Miyares, our university presidents, and law enforcement at the state, local, and campus levels to make sure that if there are protests, they are peaceful. We’re not gonna have encampments and tents put up. And yes, we will protect the ability to peacefully express yourself but we’re not gonna have the kind of hate speech and intimidation we are seeing across the country in Virginia.
Gov. Glenn Youngkin
We will continue to have live coverage all Monday long and will be live at the scene during Virginia Today.
Stay with 10 News as this breaking news story develops.
