University Offers One-Hour Meeting in Exchange for Ending Encampment

The University has offered organizers of the quad encampment a one-hour meeting with University President Alivisatos and Provost Katherine Baicker in exchange for an immediate end to the encampment and a cessation of further violations of University policy, according to an email obtained by the Maroon.

In a 12:45 p.m. Telegram message reviewed by the Maroon, encampment organizers said they would not end the encampment and were formulating a response to the email.

The email, sent by Dean of Students Michele Rasmussen to organizers of the encampment, said the proposed meeting would include discussion of “topics related to the University, Israel, and divestment.”

The University would allow three student organizers, a faculty advisor of the encampment’s choosing, and, per UCUP’s request, up to 15 student observers to attend the private meeting. No video or audio recordings would be permitted.

The University also said Alivisatos and Baicker were willing to participate in a public forum to discuss “the many viewpoints related to the Israel–Hamas War and divestment” if the University’s conditions were met.

“I hope that you agree to this proposal. I look forward to hearing from you as soon as possible,” the email concluded.

The University first spoke with organizers on Wednesday morning, according to UCUP.

“No negotiations were had on the state of the encampment,” UCUP wrote in a statement to the Maroon regarding the Wednesday meeting.

The encampment started on Monday and has now expanded to roughly 150 tents.

According to UCUP’s Instagram, there are three demands that must be fulfilled for the encampment to close. The demands are that the University “disclose investments in weapons manufacturers”; engage in reparations such as financially supporting rebuilding higher education in Gaza; and divest from “death in Gaza, the South Side, and beyond” by “ending partnerships with apartheid Israeli institutions, cutting ties with the Israel Institute, withdrawing funds from weapons manufacturer and fossil fuels, disbanding UCPD, and ceasing new construction projects on the South Side.”

The University did not respond to the Maroon’s request for comment at the time of publishing.