Ohio State University Pro-Palestine Protest Leads to Dozens of Arrests

On Thursday night, Ohio State University police and the Ohio State Highway Patrol arrested 36 people, including 16 university students, during a pro-Palestine protest against the war in Gaza. The protesters were demanding that the university disclose and divest any funds going to Israel, similar to protests at other universities across the country.

The arrests occurred near the Ohio Union around 11 p.m. after police ordered protesters to leave, citing university rules barring overnight events and camping on campus. Those who refused to disperse were arrested and charged with criminal trespassing.

Videos showed officers struggling to break through layers of protesters to rip apart tents that had been set up. Between chants and demands, many protesters gathered in the center of the group to pray. "The arrests and heavy police presence were unnecessary and made us less trustful of campus police," said students who witnessed the events.

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said the university and law enforcement agencies tried to balance First Amendment rights with established university rules. "Ohio State University has done a good job balancing the need to enforce rules on safety with the right to peacefully protest," DeWine stated. However, some Democratic lawmakers criticized the actions as unwarranted, with Ohio Rep. Munira Yasin Abdullahi, who was among those arrested, saying she suffered bruised ribs after being grabbed by her headscarf and pushed.

Why this matters: The Ohio State arrests reflect the ongoing tensions and debates around the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on college campuses nationwide. As the death toll mounts and humanitarian crisis worsens in Gaza, students are increasingly staging protests demanding universities cut financial ties to Israel and divest from companies they say are enabling the conflict.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations Ohio Chapter condemned the university's response, alleging the use of excessive force and suppression of free speech. Despite the arrests, protesters pledged to persist in fighting for a free Palestine. The university maintained that the protesters exercised their First Amendment rights for several hours before being told to leave, and the dozens of arrests, likely the highest number of protest-related detentions at Ohio State since the Vietnam War, were due to violations of well-established rules against overnight events.

Key Takeaways

• 36 people, including 16 OSU students, arrested during pro-Palestine protest
• Protesters demanded OSU disclose and divest funds going to Israel
• Police used force to break up protest, citing university rules against overnight events
• Lawmakers criticized arrests as unwarranted, with one claiming excessive force
• Protests reflect ongoing tensions over Israeli-Palestinian conflict on college campuses