Crackdown or compromise? A tale of two US campus protests - BBC News

One sent in the police, the other struck a deal with students. But why have responses been so wildly different?

12 hours agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingRelated TopicsIsrael-Gaza warImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Police square off with protesters at Northeastern University in BostonBy Mike WendlingBBC News, ChicagoThe police arrived in force at dawn on Saturday, with orders to clear "infiltrators" from the Gaza war protest camp at Northeastern University in Boston.

Within an hour, more than 100 people were under arrest, students and non-students alike, and many of their tents flattened or removed.

A large counter-protest then formed, as officers from the state police in tactical gear hauled off their suspects. The scene was one of confrontation, and chaos.

Northeastern campus administrators said they were compelled to call police as infiltration by outsiders "led to a clear escalation in tensions" and that an antisemitic slur had been heard - something the protesters deny.

As the campus protests stretch into a second week across the US, Northeastern is among many colleges that have now taken the decision to crack down hard and refused calls to divest from companies involved in Israel's military.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-68909953

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