UCSD chancellor talks Gaza protest crackdown
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UCSD chancellor Pradeep Khosla. Photo: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images
UC San Diego ordered the dismantling of the pro-Palestinian encampment on campus last month "out of concern that escalating tensions could lead to violence," the Union-Tribune reported Thursday.
Why it matters: Chancellor Pradeep Khosla's first substantial public remarks on the incident come one month after police in riot gear arrested protesters at UCSD, including 60 students and two faculty members.
State of play: Last week, UCSD academic workers joined other UC campuses in a strike over the university's handling of the Gaza protests.
- A judge ordered an end to that strike, but protests continue on campus.
Zoom in: The Union-Tribune obtained an analysis of the events that Khosla's senior staff produced three days after the incident, and reporters spoke with the chancellor on Zoom last week as protesters gathered outside his home in La Jolla.
- The encampment was set up May 1 and five days later police tore it down at the university's command.
- Campus police told Khosla that "the risk of the camp growing to be unmanageable and un-securable had reached heightened levels," per the event analysis.
What he's saying: The "turning point" that led to Khosla's decision was the peaceful dueling protests outside the encampment by pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli demonstrators, he told the U-T.
- He said wanted to avoid the violence that occurred at UCLA's pro-Palestinian encampment a week earlier.
- "The temperature between the two groups, in my mind, rose significantly, based on the reports I was getting," Khosla told the U-T.
What to watch: The university is preparing for potential protests at Saturday's commencement.
Between the lines: The UCSD chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine is planning to hold a commencement event Friday, as arrested students face disciplinary action that could affect graduation.
- Degrees and transcripts can be withheld pending the conclusion of the student conduct process, which all arrested students must go through, UCSD told Axios in a statement.