Binghamton University students set up a pro-Palestinian encampment on campus Wednesday, as protests continue on college campuses across the country.
The group of students, called the "Divest from Death Coalition", set up about 20 tents on the Peace Quad Wednesday night, after holding a rally earlier in the day.
They are calling for Binghamton University to identify Israel’s actions in Gaza as genocide, and to divest from weapons manufacturers and corporations that support Israel. The demonstrators are also demanding an academic boycott of Israeli universities and institutions and for the university to address what they say has been a spike in Islamophobia on campus.
“We will not stop until the university fully divests from the military-industrial complex,” members of the coalition said in a statement. “We condemn the university’s ties to any and all organizations aiding and abetting genocide, including Lockheed Martin and BAE Systems, which are arming Israel during its ethnic cleansing of Palestinians.”
In the statement, the coalition said the group has a zero-tolerance policy for hatred and discrimination, including Islamophobia and antisemitism. It directed student demonstrators to avoid confrontations with counter protesters.
Republican Congressman Marc Molinaro, who represents parts of the Southern Tier, held a press conference Thursday condemning the protestors. Molinaro said he has not been to the encampment yet, but said it is part of a larger movement to harass and intimidate Jewish students and faculty on campus.
“We want to de-escalate, but we want to disband,” Molinaro said. “Sadly, too many college presidents are seeking simply to keep the peace instead of stating what is abundantly clear. These protests are fueled by hate and antisemitism.”
Molinaro said universities should use suspension, loss of aid and ejection to shut down the encampments.
As of Thursday morning, Binghamton University said the administration was in communication with the demonstrators and that the university would prioritize maintaining a safe campus.
But in a statement on social media Thursday afternoon, student demonstrators said the university had stopped "cooperating" with them.