Penn has banned 24 non-University affiliated individuals who were arrested during the disbandment of the Gaza Solidarity Encampment from entering campus, according to a letter obtained by The Daily Pennsylvanian.
The letter — which was sent from Vice President for the Division of Public Safety Kathleen Shields Anderson on May 14 — informs the individual that based on their “prior disruptive behaviors,” they are no longer allowed to enter Penn’s campus or any “University building or facility” without “prior written approval.”
"Penn’s Division [of] Public Safety issued letters to the 24 non-affiliated individuals who were removed from the College Green encampment and cited for defiant trespass on May 10. Some of these individuals also engaged in destructive and unlawful behavior during a protest at the President’s House later that evening," a DPS spokesperson wrote in a statement to the DP.
"These letters were issued to protect the community and to prevent further disruption to University operations," they added.
In the letter, the University outlines the individual's involvement with the Gaza Solidarity Encampment, including their arrest on May 10, as the reason for their ban from campus.
“The behaviors of concern include your participation in the unauthorized encampment on College Green despite numerous written and oral notices that you were trespassing and ordered to disperse,” the letter reads. “Your participation in the encampment and disregard for university policy and state and federal laws contributed to unacceptable risks to the health and safety of our community.”
The letter adds that, since records indicate the individual is not a University affiliate and has caused previous disruptive impact, "it is imperative to impose conditions on [their] privilege to enter or use University premises and facilities.”
According to the letter, these individuals are not permitted to enter Penn's campus, buildings, or facility until further notice.
“Please be advised that if you enter or remain in any University premise or building without express prior permission, you may be regarded as a trespasser and may be subject to removal from the premises and/or arrest,” the letter reads.
On May 10, Penn Police officers in riot gear, with the assistance of Philadelphia Police, arrested 33 individuals — including nine Penn students — at the Gaza Solidarity Encampment.
The arrests came 16 days after pro-Palestinian activists pitched approximately 40 tents on College Green in protest of the University's response to the war in Gaza. The group demanded that Penn disclose its financial holdings; divest from corporations that benefit from the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, Israel’s occupation of Palestinian land, and Israeli institutions committing “scholasticide"; and defend Palestinian students and withdraw its disciplinary actions against pro-Palestinian activists.
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