Today at the University of South Florida’s Tampa campus at least 70 students, non-students, and legal observers assembled near the school’s library around noon, according to Creative Loafing Tampa Bay photographer Dave Decker.
Activists began to march around 1 p.m. and formed a human chain around students at the school’s MLK Plaza, who were reportedly attempting to set up at least two tents in a nearby lawn. A smaller group of pro-Israel counter-protesters was also on site.
Shortly after, at least three people were detained by campus police.
"USF Students were just brutalized and arrested for exercising their right to free speech and their right to protest," the USF chapter of Students for a Democratic Society (USF SDS), which organized the rally, wrote on social media.
Samuel Ronen, a non-student who was serving as a police liaison, told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay that the activists weren't actually setting up tents, but attempting to sit on the them like a blanket.
“The school said it was OK to sit on a blanket. It’s my belief, based on what I saw, that the police acted too quickly, and too aggressively, and spooked kids, which created a situation that was unnecessary,” Ronen added.
An email sent to students Saturday by Dean Danielle B. McDonald says tents are prohibited on campus without approval, and that they cannot be left up overnight.
“No student group requested such approvals for any events this week, therefore there are no authorized events using tents on campus this week,” McDonald wrote, adding that free speech on campus is subject to time, place and manner restrictions and that restrictions will be extended to all academic buildings. “To be clear, this means no events without current approved reservations, protests or demonstrations near those facilities will be permitted.”
Ronen told CL that approximately 50 students are still set up peacefully this afternoon on tarps, adding that there are at least five law enforcement agencies—Tampa Police, Florida Highway Patrol, Hillsborough Sheriff, university police, and Temple Terrace Police—still on site.
“There are at least as many cops as there are kids,” Ronen said.
Photo by Dave Decker
Police arresting people at the University of South Florida in Tampa, Florida on April 29, 2024.
Saba Indawala, a sophomore and member of USF SDS, told CL that police broke through the line and escalated the situation.
“It was insane. People were crying. I saw people throwing up,” Indawala said, adding that police have told students that they can’t be here overnight.
Ronen said police told him that at 5 p.m., law enforcement can move in again as they see fit.
“These students don’t look like they’re going to budge,” Ronen said. "It's unclear how reasonable the police will be with such a short time frame to pack up and move."
For weeks, students at USF have demonstrated, and staged hunger strikes, asking the school’s Board of Trustees and President Rhea Law to boycott and divest from all companies and defense contractors which support the Israeli government's indiscriminate bombardments.
Last month, Kevin Watler, Media Relations Manager for USF’s University Communications and Marketing department, told CL, “The university will not be taking action on any of the group's demands.”
In a statement to CL, USF said that USF SDS was suspended last week "after causing a disruption on campus."
"Suspended student organizations are not permitted to host events and activities, which the group was made aware of several times prior to today’s protest, including another reminder this morning," the statement said, adding that today's protest "continued until participants attempted to set up tents."
"Before removing tents, university staff again tried to advise protestors that they could not use tents. Participants refused to comply with directions from staff members. Several individuals resisted actions by university staff to take down the tents after repeated warnings, which resulted in three arrests, including one student, one employee and one individual who is not affiliated with the university," the statement continued.
There's still no evidence that students became violent before police engaged them.
The arrests come as the latest conflict between the Israeli government and Hamas has surpassed the 200-day mark. Al-Jazeera says that to date 34,979 Palestinians—including more than 14,500 children—have been killed in Israel since an Oct. 7 Hamas attack that killed 1,139 people.
Axios says that at least 600 people across the country have been arrested on at least 15 college campuses over the last week as students have set up encampments in protest of the ongoing war.
USF is no stranger to seeing its police force arrest students engaged in protest. In March 2023, four students were arrested at a “Mobilize to Save Diversity” demonstration.
In video from the incident, USF Police Chief Christopher Daniel is seen in the lobby of the Patel Center grabbing student Victoria Hinckley by the arm as she tries to explain why they were there. Five students eventually ended up facing charges, but the “Tampa 5” saw the state attorney announce plans to drop charges against them last December.
This is a developing story.
