19 arrested at UPenn after attempted takeover of campus building
On May 17, 19 pro-Palestine protesters were arrested at the University of Pennsylvania for attempting to occupy Fisher-Bennett Hall.
Six of the 19 arrested protesters are students at UPenn, according to university police.
On Friday, nearly 20 pro-Palestine protesters were arrested at the University of Pennsylvania for attempting to occupy a building on campus in Philadelphia.
“Earlier this evening, a group of individuals entered Fisher-Bennett Hall on Penn’s campus and attempted to occupy it,” a university spokesperson said in a statement. “Penn Police, with support from Philadelphia Police, escorted them out and secured the building, taking several individuals into custody.”
The spokesperson also stated that seven of the demonstrators are in police custody.
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”Twelve were issued citations for failure to disperse and failure to follow police commands and later released. Seven remain in custody awaiting felony charges, including one for assaulting a police officer,” a school official also confirmed.
Six of the 19 arrested protesters are students at UPenn, according to university police. They join nearly 3,000 other people who have been arrested on college campuses during the last month of encampments, as noted by The Intelligencer.
At 8 p.m. on Friday night, UPenn police reportedly issued an alert that the protesters had gathered together and attempted to occupy the hall. Police told students to evacuate the area as they removed the protesters from the building, according to Fox News.
Protesters also reportedly held pots and pans while chanting “We hold power” during the demonstration. At one point, protesters were lined up directly facing police in a standoff, according to WCAU.
The demonstration is said to have lasted for more than two hours, until 10:30 p.m., before the activists were successfully cleared away.
The attempted building occupation occurred a week after the UPenn administration put a stop to the encampment that had been standing for more than two weeks on the university’s campus.
“We could not allow further disruption of our academic mission. We could not allow students to be prevented from accessing study spaces and resources, attending final exams, or participating in Commencement ceremonies,” university officials said in a statement explaining the elimination of the encampment on May 10.
After the attempted building occupation on May 17, UPenn followed through on steps to further quell the pro-Palestine protests through disciplinary measures.
Specifically, the university prevented three students who participated in encampments from attending graduation on May 19, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Campus Reform has contacted the University of Pennsylvania for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
