Editor’s Note: Out of concern for privacy and safety, some sources chose to be identified by a pseudonym.
It has been over a week since UC Santa Cruz Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) launched their Gaza Solidarity Encampment. At noon May 10, SJP released a statement to the press announcing that negotiations between encampment intermediaries and administration representatives have failed. Students in the encampment are now “bracing themselves for the prospect of police violence.”
The UCSC administration engaged in in-person negotiations over SJP’s demands with a small cohort of encampment intermediaries May 7. The meeting was supposed to include Chancellor Larive, but she dropped out at the last minute, according to a May 8 UCSC SJP Instagram post.
The intermediaries rejected the administration’s first negotiation offer, considering it an attempt to “water-down” their demands, according to the same post. They countered by reiterating their initial demands, which the “administration refused to meaningfully concede to” when negotiations continued, as per the May 10 press release.
“We were told that the use of the word ‘genocide’ in a statement was off the table completely, which truly disappointed us and further proved that the UC is not yet brave enough to stand on the right side of humanity,” a student negotiator who chose to remain anonymous stated in the press release. “This system has the power to act on our demands and make divestment possible, we have seen it happen before in the case of South African apartheid and fossil fuel reliance, and it is possible now.”
According to a May 10 Lookout Santa Cruz article, Assistant Vice Chancellor Scott Hernandez-Jason said administrators are still working towards a resolution.
“Over the past week, we engaged in talks to seek an amicable resolution including the voluntary disbanding of the encampment,” Hernandez-Jason said via Lookout. “We continue to seek that outcome.”
- Many of the signs held by protestors during the May Day Rally which began the encampment have been displayed on buildings within as well as the barricades surrounding the camp.
- The spiderweb of hammocks beneath the Student Union became populated as tents in the encampment crowded the pavement. The hammocks have since been removed due to concern from the fire marshal.
- Nestled into the ATM alcove, food is stored, prepared, and served throughout the day at no cost to the campers.
- In preparation for potential police action, defensive shields have been constructed and decorated with colorful slogans and artwork.
- With campers having varied levels of outdoor experience, systems like The People’s Closet help to ensure everyone is prepared for cold temperatures and inclement weather.
- Sourced through donations by campers and supporters from around the local area, the on site library features many works focused on critical analysis of institutional systems, and furthering the cause of liberation. Along side the bound books are many zines and leaflets on facets of the Palestinian struggle and related movements.
Ten Days of Community Building
Although negotiations between intermediaries and administrators have halted, over the past ten days the Quarry Plaza encampment has grown exponentially. On the day of the camp’s formation, May 1, there were 42 tents. As of May 9, there were upwards of 100.
“[We are] illustrating the ability of people to live in a community that doesn’t funnel money to the other side of the world to do genocide, to live in a community that puts people over profit,” Dax, an SJP media liaison, said May 4.
Members have taken on responsibilities including cooking, safety patrol, and the distribution of supplies. Meals are served throughout the day — all free of charge. Bug, an SJP media liaison, estimates that the encampment serves about 500 plates a day.
“We’ve had a number of students at this school come up and tell us that this is their only way of getting three hot meals a day. The university has failed the students in that sense, but we are extremely proud to be providing that service,” Bug said. “We have unhoused students here who have a safe place to sleep, to tent up and to relax each and every day.”
Encampment members established a free library and a “people’s closet” with donated items, in addition to a first aid tent with medical supplies and a communal supplies tent with extra blankets.
As a part of its daily operations, the encampment also conducts its People’s University programming. This portion of the encampment exists “to take back [the] university and embody an education that is truly for the people and the movement to liberate Palestine,” according to a May 1 UCSC SJP Instagram post.
Events thus far have spanned from a “Know Your Rights” training to a Palestinian poetry recitation with SF State race and resistance studies professor Omar Zahzah. UCSC professors have also taught sessions throughout the week. Critical race & ethnic studies professor Christine Hong hosted a class titled, “Demilitarizing the University and the UC Regents” May 6.
Support for the encampment has also come in the form of donations. Community members supply 100 percent of the encampment’s food, and contribute many other necessary materials for running a functioning camp like tarps, umbrellas and tents.
“It gives you a sense of confidence just to see how many people are part of this cause to the extent that they’re willing to give materially to support people who are here fighting,” Dax said. “Those people are as much part of the cause as the people that are sleeping here 24/7.”
Negotiations and the Aftermath
According to the SJP press release, the UCSC administration “failed to take seriously the urgency of SJP’s demands.”
“We’re still obviously here for divestment, although official negotiations have not been fruitful for us in the past week. We have acted in good faith, but we’re just not sure that the political pressure on admin has caused them to also act in good faith,” Bug said May 10. “We have not received an offer from the admin that’s anywhere close to what we’re looking for, and we’re not going to be leaving.”
In light of the impasse that has been met between the negotiating parties and the escalation that has played out on other campuses across the country, SJP anticipates a potential police sweep of the encampment in the near future.
According to the aforementioned May 10 Lookout article, Assistant Vice Chancellor Scott Hernandez-Jason “has not responded to repeated questions about whether or not administrators plan to call in the police, or whether UCSC has given protesters a deadline to disband the encampment.”
Some students awaiting the sweep indicate that they will stay to peacefully defend the encampment and their beliefs in divestment in the event of police confrontation.
“We’re going to stay peaceful. We’re going to stay de-escalatory no matter what comes our way. We are never going to resort to violence. That’s something that we’ve been very clear about since the beginning,” Bug said. “We’re going to keep focusing on Palestine. You’ll see us until divestment happens.”
