DePaul University called in CPD and Campus Public Safety at 5:30 a.m. to dismantle the ongoing encampment on the Lincoln Park Campus. Two students were arrested for obstructing traffic, said CPD Chief of Patrol Jon Hein. 

Hailey Bosek contributed to this story.

The Chicago Police Department stands in front of the DePaul University Quad after clearing the encampment on Thursday, May 16. Photo by Alexandra Murphy.

On Thursday morning, DePaul University called in the Chicago Police Department and DePaul Public Safety to dismantle the ongoing pro-Palestinian encampment on the Quad at 5:30 a.m after its 17th day on campus.  

Protestors say officers arrived wearing protective gear, knocking on tents with batons and pushing everyone back from the encampment to exit on the side of Belden Avenue.  

Organizers also explained that from the time they were informed about the raid until they had to leave, they had less than five minutes to gather their belongings. 

DePaul University President Robert L. Manuel sent an email around the same time at 5:34 a.m. to faculty, staff and students announcing the encampment takedown, stating: “Since the encampment began, DePaul has taken great care to provide the greatest leeway possible for free expression. However, the expression of some has now led to the disruption of university operations, interference with student learning, and safety threats to individuals and the public.”

The email also said one of the main reasons CPD was called in was because “the situation has escalated with physical altercations, credible threats of violence from people not associated with our community, an inability for the other members of our community to take part in the core academic experiences on our campus, and an ever-growing series of threats to the people involved in the encampment and our community members.” 

Henna Ayesh, the media spokesperson for Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) at DePaul University, said organizers of the DePaul Divestment Coalition were not given prior warning by the university administration before CPD and Public Safety went in and cleared the encampment and removed students’ belongings. 

“They were pushing people out of their tents, and they got all the students to come out forcibly onto the street,” Ayesh said. “When they got all the tenants to come out onto the streets, if they were without belongings, they didn’t give them the chance to go back and even grab it.” 

Shortly after CPD removed protestors from the Quad, DePaul crews could be seen cleaning up the encampment and large garbage trucks were brought in to dispose of tents and belongings. Other crew members later in the day were seen ripping off signage from the front gates.

A view of the Quad after DePaul crews had been clearing the encampment. Photo by Adit Jaganathan.

The clearing of the encampment follows the Office of the President sending out an email last Saturday, announcing the university had reached an “impasse” in negotiations with the DePaul Divestment Coalition, saying responses to the encampment have “inadvertently created public safety issues that put our community at risk.” 

After CPD and Public Safety had completed emptying the Quad, the Office of the President sent out another email which included a detailed explanation of why the university decided to bring in CPD and Public Safety to clear out the encampment on DePaul’s campus. The email included a link to an accumulation of photos and videos of items that were deemed a threat found in the encampment, along with some complaints from neighbors about the ongoing encampment. 

Photos published on the website show vandalism to DePaul’s property such as spray-painted graffiti, chalk and antisemitic stickers. They posted videos of noise ordinances in the Quad and of student protestors shouting, “Go home, racist!” to the counter protestors on May 5.  Other videos and pictures show art that condemns zionism, mentions the intifada or calls for the end of Israel. The university website links to videos originally posted by pro-Israel pages that documented interactions between the conflicting sides. 

On the website, the university also said there were over 625 registered complaints from neighbors and community members and 425 registered complaints from students, faculty and staff and parents. 

Amber Price, a resident who lives behind the Mobil gas station where students were protesting, said she was taken aback when she saw the encampment being cleared out by police. 

“I am shocked because, like I said, I’ve been in this building the entire time this has been going on,” said Price. “Before today, it was very peaceful.”

DePaul University’s encampment was first set up on April 30, when DePaul students who are members of the DePaul Divestment Coalition set up an encampment demanding that DePaul University be transparent with students about their investments, as well as divest from and cut ties with Israel. 

DePaul’s encampment was the last standing in the city of Chicago and the second-longest lasting across the country, surpassing the one at the University of Chicago, which had been disbanded by police after a week.

Hamas, which controls Gaza, attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing an estimated 1,200 Israelis and taking around 240 people hostage. The Israeli military has since conducted more than six months of military action in Gaza, including large-scale airstrikes and raids. More than 34,500 people have been killed in Gaza, including more than 13,000 children, according to Palestinian health officials. The United Nations says “hundreds of thousands” more could die if Israel goes forward with a planned invasion of the city of Rafah. 

Rafah has acted as the last evacuation place for citizens. An area of eastern Rafah that holds more than 100,000 Palestinians has now been ordered to evacuate to Muwasi, a declared safe zone by Israel. The United Nations says that this area, which is more of a makeshift tented camp, is not ready to hold that many refugees. 

At DePaul, in a press conference, Chief of Patrol Officer Jon Hein said CPD came in at the university’s request, saying they had been asked to “assist in the removal of the encampment.” Hein also confirmed two people were arrested for obstruction of traffic, one male and one female student.

Chief of Patrol Officer Jon Hein speaks at a press conference at the end of the Quad on Belden Avenue on Thursday, May 16. Photo by Alexandra Murphy.

“One of the students was wearing the hijab and the police took it off,” Ayesh alleged in response to the encampment arrests. “And she’s now arrested. Both of them are arrested. They weren’t doing anything.” There is video evidence of this incident, however 14 East doesn’t have access to the video. Both students have since been released, according to an Instagram post by the DePaul Divestment Coalition. 

After the campus raid, students traveled in a large group across the street to the Mobil gas station on Fullerton, where they continued to hold signs and chant until around 1 p.m. There was heavy police presence throughout the day, with CPD lined up on bikes in front of the group of protestors and some who stood next to the DePaul Quad into the late afternoon. 

Some students sat along the curb, trying to figure out how to get lost laptops and items back. Some students held signs that read “We will be in these streets until the genocide ends.” When 14 East reporters asked what was next for the coalition, media liaison Simran Bains explained their priorities were centered around re-centering and keeping the community of student encampments safe. 

“Our first priority right now is making sure that our community is safe, and they’re emotionally, mentally and physically taken care of,” Bains said. “As well as getting the people who were wrongfully arrested for exercising their First Amendment right to protest out of jail, and making sure that they’re physically, emotionally and mentally okay too.”

Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez (25th ward), who joined with protestors, said he believes the students at DePaul should be granted the right to protest on their campus and ask for the university to divest from Israel. 

“I think the university has a responsibility to de-escalate to meet the students and faculty as well that are protesting the injustice of genocide, and I think that it is immoral to silence,” said Ald. Sigcho-Lopez. Ald. Sigcho-Lopez has been a vocal supporter of the encampment since the start, making multiple appearances to speak with students and press.

In response to the encampment in Lincoln Park, Ald. Timmy Knudsen (43rd ward) also released a response to DePaul University clearing the encampment, stating the following: 

“We are in touch with university leadership and City officials and will keep residents updated as we learn more about the next steps for the area.” 

Protestors gather in front of the DePaul Lincoln Park Student Center in the evening, following the clearing of the encampment. Photo by Alexandra Murphy.

Later in the day following the raid, around 6:30 p.m., the DePaul Divestment Coalition held a press conference in front of the Lincoln Park Student Center, with around 300 people in attendance. Students continued chanting, “There is only one solution, the student-led revolution.” Among some of the speakers were SPJ spokesperson Ayesh, DePaul Student Government Association President Parveen Mundi, Ald. Sigcho-Lopez, spokesperson Ethan for Jews for Justice, a DePaul liberal arts professor who declined to be named and Rabbi Brant Rosen of Tzedek Chicago. 

After the press conference, more joined the crowd in front of the Student Center for a rally, holding signs and chanting while heading north on Sheffield. Hundreds of students walked the street to rally against the clearing of the Quad. The rally ended around 10 p.m with protestors completing their journey on Belden Avenue before students dispersed and police presence subsided.

In a speech regarding the encampment teardown, Ayesh said the DePaul Divestment Coalition has no plans to cease demands for DePaul to divest. 

“The sentiment of divestment has not left with it,” said Ayesh. “And this will not end until DePaul divests. So, join us in holding DePaul accountable.” 

CORRECTION: The Student Government Association was not involved in the establishment of the encampment, and the group does not associate with the DePaul Divestment Coalition. 

Header photo by Alexandra Murphy