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Yesterday, the UConnDivest kiddos held their first official protest rally of the semester to remind folks that they are still here.
And in fact, they never really went away.
Ever since the UConn 26 got arrested, the group has been calling on UConn President Radenka Maric to write a letter to AG Willam Tong to urge the Attorney General's office to drop the charges against the 25 students and one recent graduate who were arrested at “The UCommune” Gaza Solidarity Encampment earlier this year.
The group is still calling on Radenka Maric to bow to its demands on Gaza, including divesting from Israel, after taunting Maric with social media posts over the summer.
On the first day of school, August 26th, UConnDivest reaffirmed its stance "in support of disclosure and divestment" and it called for "an end to repression of student activists" and voiced commitment to "a Free Palestine, from the river to the sea."
The UConn Provost and Vice President of Student Life & Enrollment allegedly agreed to meet with the activist group to discuss their demands at the end of August.
But UConn President Maric failed to yield to the activists demands and declined the meeting request, so UConnDivest called for its first rally of the semester.
Protestors were encouraged to bring signs, a keffiyeh... and to wear a mask to keep the community "safe" as they protested outside of Gulley Hall where they chanted the anti-Semitic saying "from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free."
The protestors then chalked up the sidewalks outside of the UConn President's office with phrases like: “Randenka = Killer,” “Protesting is not a crime,” "Blood on your hands," “Arrest Netanyahu, not students,” “Stop meatriding Israel,” and “Radenka hates Palestinians, ur cancelled Ms. Piggy" with a crudely drawn pic of President Maric as a horned pig with curly hair.
A stack of papers was dropped at the doorstep outside the president's office, including one with UConn President Maric's picture calling her a "genocide supporter."
Meanwhile, the protestors continued to shout and chant: "Radenka, Radenka, your hands are red. How many kids did you kill today? Free, free Palestine. Free free free Palestine... meet with us, meet with us..."
"After five hours of sustained protest outside of the UConn President's office, Radenka Maric REFUSED to engage with pro-Palestine activists demanding to end UConn's complicity in the genocide in Gaza. She ordered a procession of FIVE police cruisers to avoid her constituents. We demand answers about why Radenka ordered the arrest of 26 people protesters!" said UConn Divest and the Connecticut Democratic Socialists of America in a joint statement.
When UConn President Maric eventually emerged from her office, the activists shouted at her, "Radenka, Radenka, your hands are red... 40,000 people dead... you're complicit!" and mocked her police assistance.
UConn Spokesperson Stephanie Reitz told the Hartford Courant, in response to questions about yesterday's protest, "One of UConn’s strengths is the diversity of opinions among the 32,000-plus students across its campuses statewide.”
“The University respects the rights of students to gather and express themselves peacefully on any topics they wish,” Reitz continued, but she "did not respond directly to requests to explain why Maric had declined meetings with students."
