University of Minnesota President Rebecca Cunningham said that while she has a “strong personal commitment” to free expression, the takeover and vandalism of Morrill Hall on the U’s Twin Cities campus on Monday afternoon was “not a form of a legitimate protest.”
“Our University has a rich history and commitment to free expression. Under my leadership, we will continue to value individuals’ rights to peaceful protest and the expression of diverse viewpoints, in ways that are consistent with University policies and federal, state, and local laws,” Cunningham said in a statement Tuesday morning.
“We have seen many peaceful protests this fall. However, what happened in Morrill Hall yesterday was not a form of legitimate protest. Threatening behavior and destruction of property have absolutely no place within our community. These actions endanger safety, erode the fabric of our University community, and undermine the legitimacy of important causes that our students, faculty and staff care so deeply about.”
Eleven people were arrested Monday evening, and Morrill Hall is closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
The protest was started by the university’s Students for a Democratic Society chapter, which posted about the takeover of the building on Instagram Monday afternoon: “While Northern Gaza burns, administration is worried about chalk and megaphones. No homecoming as usual! Divest UMN from Israel! No neutrality in genocide! Defend academic freedom!” the post gave the address for Morrill Hall, as well as #divest #palestine #intifada.
According to the school, protesters assembled on the lawn in front of Coffman Memorial Union starting around 3 p.m. on Monday, Oct 21. Shortly before 4 p.m., a group of these individuals quickly moved north, up the Northrop Mall, and entered Morrill Hall.
The protest group said they were renaming the building “Halimy Hall,” reportedly after 19-year-old Palestinian TikTok creator Medo Halimy who died in August in an apparent Israeli airstrike.
The university statement Monday said: “Once inside the building, protesters began spray painting, including covering lenses of all internal security cameras, breaking interior windows, and barricading the building’s entrance and exit points.
Cunningham said that several employees were working in Morrill Hall at the time of the incident, some of whom were unable to exit the building for an extended period of time.
“Doors were barricaded inside and outside with furniture, and bicycle U-locks were placed on door handles, preventing employees’ free movement and exit. This was a terrifying experience for many of our employees,” she wrote. “These actions crossed the line into illegal activity when they actively threatened the emotional and physical safety of our employees, prevented their free movement, disrupted building operations and destroyed campus property. The safety, security and wellbeing of our staff, students and faculty are our highest priority, and we cannot — and will not — allow this type of behavior.”
In addition to Morrill Hall being closed, the school’s public safety department sent an alert shortly after 5 p.m. that Coffman Union, Weisman Museum, Hasselmo Hall, Ford Hall, Vincent Murphy Hall, Tate Lab, Northrop Auditorium, Johnston Hall, Walter Library, Smith Hall, and Kolthoff Hall were all locked until further notice because of “protest activity,” and all occupants were free to leave at any time. By 6:30 p.m., all but Coffman Union and Morrill Hall had reopened.
Minneapolis City Councilmember Robin Wonsley, whose Ward 2 includes the University of Minnesota campus, sent a letter to U Police Chief Matthew Clark, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty, and Minneapolis Minneapolis City Attorney Kristyn Anderson, encouraging “UMPD to drop all charges and remove the probable cause charge so that students can be released on bail immediately.” Clark, Moriarity and Anderson could not be reached for comment.
“In this case, the students were very reasonably urging the University of Minnesota to divest from the state of Israel and participate in an academic boycott of Israeli academic institutions. Instead of arresting students, the University should work with students to accomplish these goals,” wrote Wonsley, who was also the lead author of the City of Minneapolis’ ceasefire resolution that passed in January and finalized in February after Mayor Jacob Frey’s veto was overridden.
The U’s Board of Regents voted in August not to divest endowment money from Israel. Divestment was one of the six items that the school, then under the leadership of Interim President Jeff Ettinger, put in a message to encampment organizers as part of the concessions to end the encampment before graduation in the spring.
However, there was no promise to divest; the UMN Divest coalition and encampment organizers were invited – as were Jewish, pro-Israel student leaders – to “share your advocacy priorities” with the Board of Regents on May 10.
Ethan Roberts, the deputy executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas, said that anyone claiming the event as peaceful was being disingenuous.
“When you start from the premise that the events of Oct. 7, 2023, was righteous resistance, everything is justifiable,” Roberts said, criticizing and pointing to the language used in an SDS Instagram post.
“It’s not accurate to call them pro-Palestinian; they are pro-Hamas. They are terrorists,” he said. “They terrorized those administrators at the U, and have gone from violent rhetoric to violence. We give President Cunningham all the credit for taking action and bringing in police to rescue staff. We hope all appropriate charges are brought and school follows with appropriate punishment.
“There’s no place in civil society for smashing a building and holding people hostage because you believe Oct. 7 was ‘righteous resistance’ and the U doesn’t see it that way.”
