A petition in support of students' right to protest at the 'Gaza Solidarity Encampment' has been sent in multiple Penn club group chats and garnered over 1,000 signatures.
The petition is addressed to Interim Penn President Larry Jameson, Provost John Jackson, and Senior Executive Vice President Craig Carnaroli. It demands that they allow the "peaceful protest encampment to continue" and "guarantee no disciplinary actions will be taken against students involved in the encampment." The petition says that is is signed by Penn faculty, staff, students, and alumni.
The petition references an email sent by Jameson on April 26 stating that the encampment constitutes “blatant violations of University policies.” The statement drew strong condemnation from Penn's chapter of the American Association of University Professors, which described Jameson's claims as based on "unsubstantiated allegations" that have been disputed by faculty and students who have attended the encampment.
The petition claims that the University's response to the encampment departs from precedent, pointing to the 2022 encampment on College Green by student group Fossil Free Penn. It notes that in that instance, the University respected the peaceful protesters' right to academic free speech, and allowed them to remain in the area for multiple weeks.
"Like Fossil Free Penn, the Gaza Solidarity Encampment is a principled, disciplined, and peaceful demonstration," the petition reads.
The petition states that the Gaza Solidarity Encampment has created a space to "uphold free speech and the productive exchange of ideas." It notes that Jameson has emphasized the importance of these two principles in previous emails to the Penn community.
The petition describes trainings in de-escalation practices, teach-ins with scholars, Shabbat and seder on site, and support of Muslim community prayer.
It also references visits from elected Pennsylvania and New York officials to the encampment. State Rep. Rick Krajewski (D-Philadelphia), and 2022 Nursing Ph.D. graduate Tarik Khan (D-Philadelphia), as well as state Sen. Nikil Saval (D-Philadelphia) have visited the encampment over the past few days.
The petition concludes by calling on Penn to abide by its commitment to open expression and "allow its students to speak their truth and be leaders in their community."
"We implore you not to escalate the situation by forcibly clearing out the encampment, or threatening disciplinary action against any of the students involved," the letter reads. "We urge you to allow the students to continue their peaceful protest."
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