In most cases, it’s reasonable to expect that groups of protesters will abide by the law. But there are times when doing so diminishes the effectiveness of the protests.
Police have been summoned to break up pro-Palestinian encampments of protesters at colleges throughout the U.S.
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Much media coverage of the US campus protests has been very negative. But there are many very positive aspects to the demonstrations that deserve attention.
NYPD police officers march onto Columbia University’s campus in New York City on April 30, 2024.
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While most colleges and universities have their own police units, some schools, like Columbia University, have only private security − and then can call in outside police when they feel it is needed.
A student is arrested during a pro-Palestinian demonstration at the University of Texas at Austin on April 24, 2024.
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Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, conservative activists led a counterattack against campus antiwar and civil rights demonstrators by demanding action from college presidents, the courts and the police.
Campus police have been accused of biased practices.
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As a student protest continues at Syracuse University, a scholar argues that student activism is a valuable part of the college experience.
Black students who express an interest in racial justice are less likely to get a response from predominantly white, private liberal arts colleges, new research shows.
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New research by sociologist Ted Thornhill shows that black students who indicate they plan to fight for racial justice are more likely to be ignored by white admissions counselors.
Black power militant H. Rap Brown and Stokely Carmichael (right) appeared at a sit-in protest at Columbia University in New York City on April 26, 1968.
AP
The 1968 protests at Columbia University led the institution to abandon a gym project that residents considered racist and cut off its defense work – and generated worldwide attention in the process.
Demonstrators gather in anticipation of controversial speaker Ann Coulter near the University of California, Berkeley campus, April 27, 2017.
AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez
New laws pending in Wisconsin and North Carolina would require public universities to punish students who disrupt campus speakers. But these laws would do more to hinder free speech than protect it.
Students protested at UC Berkeley on both sides: in opposition to Ann Coulter and in support of free speech.
AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez
What legal rules must colleges and universities follow when it comes to speech on campus? And, beyond legal requirements, what is a school’s obligation to protect – or limit – free speech?
High school and college students protested Trump’s inauguration at Seattle Central College in January.
AP Photo/Elaine Thompson
When it comes to politics these days, it feels like everything is ‘my way or the highway.’ What can colleges do to end this moral fundamentalism and get students listening to each other?
Protestors at the University of California, Berkeley campus oppose the appearance of Breitbart News editor Milo Yiannopoulos.
AP Photo/Ben Margot
UC Berkeley had a duty to protect the free speech of right-wing provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos and those protesting his appearance. But what are the limits of free speech when it comes to campus safety?
May 1968 students’ protest in Berlin.
Holger.Ellgaard
Associate Professor of German and European Studies and Director of Graduate Studies, Department of Germanic and Slavic Languages, Vanderbilt University