Two leftist groups receive suspensions, fines over encampment at Oregon State

Oregon State University in Corvallis has suspended two far-left student groups that established a pro-Hamas encampment to call for divestment from Israel during the spring semester. 

Specifically, the university administration decided to suspend Students United for Palestinian Equal Rights (SUPER) and Young Democratic Socialists of America (YDSA). SUPER has been suspended for three years and YDSA has been suspended for one year, as reported by KEZI News.

Additionally, the Oregon State administration reportedly fined the two groups $3,000 for damage done to the grass located on the campus quad.

The university has reportedly stated that the groups will be allowed to appeal the fine and suspensions, as both student groups have expressed that they intend to do so.

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“We want to make it clear that it is entirely possible to vigorously exercise one’s free expression rights without violating the university’s broad free expression policies,” Rob Odom, Oregon State Vice President for University Relations and Marketing, told the Albany Democrat-Herald.

“Students and student organizations referred to the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards made the voluntary decision to participate in the encampment with the knowledge of these policies and potential consequences,” Odom continued.

Odom also told the Albany Democrat-Herald that the university does not take specific viewpoints into consideration when making adjudicatory decisions, saying: “OSU applies its policies evenly and without regard to viewpoints of students or student organizations.”.

SUPER decried the fines and the suspensions in an Instagram post on Aug. 12, arguing that the decision to suspend one student group longer than the other reflected “racism” on the part of the university administration.

“The decision to impose a longer suspension on SUPER than YDSA, despite the solidarity among the groups in a shared cause and movement, reflects a particularly racist contempt for Palestinian students,” SUPER stated. “Both organizations harbor a safe and meaningful community for their members, composed of students allied in their outspoken commitment to human rights.”

In its post, SUPER also disputed the fines that had been assessed along with YDSA, explaining that it would not accept the total because it has not been given an “itemized” list of the damages.

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“The official decision letters do not include an itemized list of supposed damages, despite multiple requests by the charged parties,” SUPER wrote. “Turf grass experts at OSU assert that $3,000 is an unfair assessment of the alleged damages.”

Last month, Campus Reform reported that the University of California system spent $29 million cleaning up after anti-Israel protests during the spring semester.

Campus Reform has contacted Oregon State University for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.