Photo: Blake Troli, KFI News
LOS ANGELES (CNS) - UCLA was again conducting remote classes and maintaining limited campus operations Friday, one day after more than 200 people were arrested during the clearing of a pro-Palestinian encampment that left extensive damage to two major campus buildings.
According to the sheriff's department, a total of 209 people were arrested during the law enforcement raid on the encampment, which occurred around 2:45 a.m. Thursday and ended the weeklong protest that was the scene of multiple violent clashes.
Most of those arrested in the raid were processed and booked on suspicion of unlawful assembly, then released from custody with instructions to appear in court at a later date.
"Individuals were given food, water and had access to public restrooms as they were being processed," according to the sheriff's department. "They were also offered reentry services and transportation services."
Los Angeles County Public Defender Ricardo Garcia said in a statement that his office is committed to providing all arrestees with representation and support.
"At this time, we do not have information on what, if any, charges will be presented," he said. "Nonetheless, it is essential that due process and the presumption of innocence are upheld. We will work diligently to protect the rights of our clients throughout."
No significant injuries to protesters or the hundreds of police officers who took part in the raid were reported.
"We approached the encampment with the goal of maximizing our community members' ability to make their voices heard on an urgent global issue," UCLA Chancellor Gene Block said in a statement Thursday afternoon. "We had allowed it to remain in place so long as it did not jeopardize Bruins' safety or harm our ability to carry out our mission.
"But while many of the protesters at the encampment remained peaceful, ultimately, the site became a focal point for serious violence as well as a huge disruption to our campus. Several days of violent clashes between demonstrators and counter-demonstrators put too many Bruins in harm's way and created an environment that was completely unsafe for learning."
Block said roughly 300 people who had been inside the campus left the area voluntarily before the mass arrests began.
The clearing of the encampment, however, gave a broader picture of the amount of damage done to the campus. The front of Royce Hall and Powell Library suffered extensive graffiti damage, some of it profane. Piles of garbage were also left behind in the former encampment area.
Cleanup crews moved into the area Thursday morning, and made relatively quick work of the garbage removal. The graffiti removal was likely to take much longer.
Campus security was also maintaining a presence on the campus, amid fears that protesters might return to the scene and try to re-establish the encampment.
Mayor Karen Bass issued a statement around midday Thursday defending the decision to clear the encampment.
"Every student deserves to be safe and live peacefully on their campus," she said. "Harassment, vandalism and violence have no place at UCLA or anywhere in our city. My office will continue to coordinate closely with local and state law enforcement, area universities and community leaders to keep campuses safe and peaceful."
Although the police activity Thursday morning brought the weeklong encampment to an end, investigations are still pending about the university's response to the protest and some of the violent clashes that occurred, most notably a late Tuesday-early Wednesday attack on the encampment by counter- protesters who set of fireworks and allegedly deployed pepper spray or bear repellent. The violence prompted a cancellation of all classed at UCLA on Wednesday.
Gov. Gavin Newsom and other elected officials called for investigations into the university and police response. Observers said the Tuesday night attack was allowed to rage for several hours with little to no police intervention, until officers in riot gear finally moved in around 3 a.m. and restored order.
In a message to the UCLA community Wednesday afternoon, Chancellor Block called the overnight clashes the result of "instigators" who came to the campus to "forcefully attack the encampment."
He added: "We are still gathering information about the attack on the encampment (Tuesday) night, and I can assure you that we will conduct a thorough investigation that may lead to arrests, expulsions and dismissals. We are also carefully examining our own security processes in light of recent events. ... This is a dark chapter in our campus' history. We will restore a safe learning environment at UCLA."
But Newsom's office called the "limited and delayed campus law enforcement response ... unacceptable."
University of California President Michael V. Drake issued a statement Wednesday saying he has "requested a detailed accounting from the campus about what transpired in the early morning hours today (Wednesday)."
"But some confusion remains. Therefore, we are also ordering an independent external review of both UCLA's planning and actions, and the effectiveness of the mutual aid response. Such a review will help us address many immediate questions but also help guide us in possible future events."
The UC Board of Regents was holding a special closed-door meeting for Friday to discuss campus encampments and the university system's response.
In response to the criticism of the police response to the violence, the Federated University Police Officers' Association issued a statement on behalf of officers at the 10 police departments in the UC system. The association insisted that decisions about police response to campus violence "rest firmly in the hands of campus leadership."
"They shoulder the accountability for the outcomes stemming from these decisions, not the UC Police Department," according to the group. "... The campus leadership, not law enforcement, owns the results of their decisions."
Organizers of the UCLA Palestine Solidarity Encampment, similar to their counterparts at USC, had issued a list of demands last week calling for divestment of all University of California and UCLA Foundation funds from companies tied to Israel, along with a demand that the university call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war and begin an academic boycott against Israeli universities, including a suspension of study-abroad programs.
The UC issued a statement in response noting that the university has "consistently opposed calls for boycott against and divestment from Israel. While the university affirms the right of our community members to express diverse viewpoints, a boycott of this sort impinges on the academic freedom of our students and faculty and the unfettered exchange of ideas on our campuses.
"UC tuition and fees are the primary funding sources for the University's core operations. None of these funds are used for investment purposes," the statement continued.
Block, who is stepping down as chancellor at the end of July, is expected to testify before Congress on May 23 about the campus' response to antisemitism and actions to protect Jewish students.