There has been a pro-Palestinian encampment on MIT’s campus for the past two weeks. This afternoon, MIT’s President Sally Kornbluth posted a statement announcing that the camp will have to come to a close. She gave protesters until 2:30 pm today to vacate the camp. Kornbluth cited several reasons including the safety of protesters, the unfairness of allowing them to dominate the public space and evidence that outside forces were pushing for escalation.
The war in the Middle East continues to cause anguish and conflict here at MIT. Some have expressed their views through the encampment on the Kresge lawn. My team and I, as well as many faculty members, have engaged in extensive conversation with these students and have not interfered as they have continued their protest. However, given developments over the past several days, I must now take action to bring closure to a situation…
