BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – Pro-Palestinian protests continued for the third day on Tuesday at the University of Vermont, with hundreds of students rallying in support of Gaza.
The protests at UVM, Middlebury, and dozens of colleges across the country have ramped up in recent days, including protesters taking over a building at Columbia University in New York early Tuesday,
The UVM encampment popped up Sunday. Students are demanding the administration disclose its endowment, divest from companies doing business with Israel, cut ties with Israeli schools, and cancel commencement speaker former U.N. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield.
There have been crackdowns at other schools including suspensions and expulsions, but so far UVM officials are taking a wait-and-see approach.
Burlington Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak said in a statement said she has been in touch with both students and the administration. “I have engaged with student organizers and I appreciate their commitment to peaceful protest, which is a critical part of all educational communities,” she said. “I have also been in close communication with UVM leadership, and I am grateful that they are prioritizing student safety.”