UNC police obtain warrant regarding SJP, causing anti-Israel activists to panic
The warrant follows after extensive vandalism caused by anti-Israel activists at the university.
‘The University supports peaceful demonstrations, but the right to free speech does not include causing considerable damage to a historic building,’ a school spokesperson told Campus Reform.
The University of North Carolina chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) has panicked regarding a search warrant obtained by the UNC Chapel Hill police against the group.
In a July 12 Instagram post, the SJP claimed that the UNC police is “[r]elentless in their commitment to GENOCIDE,” and warned: “We recently learned that the UNC Police Department obtained a search warrant compelling Meta to divulge UNC SJP’s Instagram data.”
The SJP wrote: “The warrant is related to events that allegedly took place on May 11, when we held a People’s Graduation ceremony for suspended students who had been banned from graduating due to their pro-Palestinian activism.”
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It continued: “During demonstrations after the event, a group of autonomous activists allegedly splattered red paint on the steps of South Building and wrote messages on the building condemning UNC’s complicity in genocide.”
The SJP condemned the warrant as “yet another example of police and universities criminalizing political activity.”
“If the administration thinks these legal maneuvers will quell our movement, it is horribly mistaken – we will not stop and we will not rest until UNC divests and there is a free Palestine from the river to the sea,” the anti-Israel activists concluded.
The warrant, which was obtained by Campus Reform, authorizes the retrieval of “Basic subscriber information (BSI) including but not limited to: name, address, phone number, credit card information, account creation information, IP address, direct messages, location data, device data and connection logs of account uncsjp [the school’s SJP chapter] from May 2, 2024 till May 13, 2024.”
The “Overview of probable cause” section of the warrant explains the UNC SJP’s disruptive actions.
It states that at UNC on May 11, “a group of five individuals carrying a blue bag walk to the steps in front of the South Building and begin throwing ballons [sic] filled with red paint onto the steps. As they are throwing the balloons several other individuals come and begin throwing them at the steps and sidewalk as well.”
The description continues: “Once all the balloons were thrown several individuals then placed their hands in the paint and would spread the paint directly onto the building columns, walls, windows, and door. They also used black and blue markers/paint to write onto the building, door, and windows.”
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The warrant states that the UNC SJP advertised the “People’s Graduation” event on May 11 that resulted in the aforementioned vandalism and encouraged its followers to wear masks to hide their identities.
As noted in the warrant, the UNC SJP also shared an Instagram post on May 11 showing the steps of the South Building covered in red paint, as well as the front door covered in red handprints.
A UNC spokesperson told Campus Reform: “The University supports peaceful demonstrations, but the right to free speech does not include causing considerable damage to a historic building.”
Campus Reform has reached out to the UNC SJP for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
