California's law enforcement mutual aid system, which sets aside $25 million annually to support local agencies in natural disasters and other emergencies, was used by the state's public universities to quell pro-Palestine protests. In an effort to curb student-led demonstrations for Palestinian solidarity on their campuses, university officials asked for outside law enforcement assistance through the LEMA (Law Enforcement Mutual Aid) system.
University President Tom Jackson of California Polytechnic University, Humboldt, emailed the sheriff of Humboldt County's police department in April 2024, asking to bring in additional law enforcement officers to end a three-day occupation by students demonstrating in solidarity with Palestine. He requested assistance from outside agencies under the LEMA program, which allows for reimbursement of expenses incurred during mutual aid events.
The university's decision was part of a broader effort by California public universities to suppress pro-Palestine protests. According to an investigative series conducted by The Intercept, more than 20,000 pages of documentation show that at least 30 public universities across the state requested LEMA assistance, including Cal Poly Humboldt.
University officials argued that campus closures would result in significant revenue loss and cited the threat of "domestic violent extremism" as justification for the action. However, civil liberties advocates argued that the use of outside law enforcement agencies to suppress student-led protests undermined trust between students and university administrators.
The practice of bringing outside law enforcement officers onto campus has become increasingly normalized in the University of California system, with many universities responding to pro-Palestine demonstrations by deploying militarized police forces. This approach fundamentally alters the power dynamics of a protest, said Sabiya Ahamed, a staff attorney at Palestine Legal, as it brings trained violent tactics against peaceful protesters.
In some cases, this resulted in radicalizing students who witnessed the use of force against their classmates and injuring peaceful protesters. For instance, at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), university administrators tapped state emergency services funds to bring in outside law enforcement officers and arrest countless students, with many injured.
The pro-Palestine encampments presented university leaders with a public relations crisis, forcing them to choose between allowing peaceful protests to continue or quelling them using the full force of the police. With encouragement from the state government, California public universities overwhelmingly chose the latter approach.
The Intercept's investigation into the use of LEMA funds by California public universities found that these funds were used to bring in outside law enforcement agencies to clear university pro-Palestine encampments, often resulting in violent crackdowns and arrests. The incident highlights the normalization of militarized policing on college campuses and underscores concerns about the erosion of trust between students and university administrators.
University President Tom Jackson of California Polytechnic University, Humboldt, emailed the sheriff of Humboldt County's police department in April 2024, asking to bring in additional law enforcement officers to end a three-day occupation by students demonstrating in solidarity with Palestine. He requested assistance from outside agencies under the LEMA program, which allows for reimbursement of expenses incurred during mutual aid events.
The university's decision was part of a broader effort by California public universities to suppress pro-Palestine protests. According to an investigative series conducted by The Intercept, more than 20,000 pages of documentation show that at least 30 public universities across the state requested LEMA assistance, including Cal Poly Humboldt.
University officials argued that campus closures would result in significant revenue loss and cited the threat of "domestic violent extremism" as justification for the action. However, civil liberties advocates argued that the use of outside law enforcement agencies to suppress student-led protests undermined trust between students and university administrators.
The practice of bringing outside law enforcement officers onto campus has become increasingly normalized in the University of California system, with many universities responding to pro-Palestine demonstrations by deploying militarized police forces. This approach fundamentally alters the power dynamics of a protest, said Sabiya Ahamed, a staff attorney at Palestine Legal, as it brings trained violent tactics against peaceful protesters.
In some cases, this resulted in radicalizing students who witnessed the use of force against their classmates and injuring peaceful protesters. For instance, at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), university administrators tapped state emergency services funds to bring in outside law enforcement officers and arrest countless students, with many injured.
The pro-Palestine encampments presented university leaders with a public relations crisis, forcing them to choose between allowing peaceful protests to continue or quelling them using the full force of the police. With encouragement from the state government, California public universities overwhelmingly chose the latter approach.
The Intercept's investigation into the use of LEMA funds by California public universities found that these funds were used to bring in outside law enforcement agencies to clear university pro-Palestine encampments, often resulting in violent crackdowns and arrests. The incident highlights the normalization of militarized policing on college campuses and underscores concerns about the erosion of trust between students and university administrators.
This is so messed up 
. I mean, what's next? Using police to suppress student-led food drives or book clubs? It's outrageous that uni presidents think they can just call in the cops on their own campuses for peaceful protests. Newsflash: it's not terrorism, it's free speech! 
. Like, seriously, how can one person's opinions be allowed to dictate what happens on campus? The fact that uni officials are choosing to go it alone with LEMA funds just shows they're more interested in covering their own backsides than doing what's right.
, but I wish more people were talking about this. We need to make sure we're not losing our fundamental rights to protest and express ourselves on campus 
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. Like I was saying earlier, it's so wild how universities just used the LEMA system to bring in outside cops to shut down pro-Palestine protests. It's like, what's next? Asking them to send in SWAT teams for a school play? 
But seriously, it's super concerning that they're using this to suppress student-led activism. I mean, I get it, there are risks involved with campus protests, but the state is supposed to be supporting these universities, not just letting them use public funds to silence students. 
And what about the fact that some of these universities were able to use LEMA funds to clear out entire pro-Palestine encampments? That's just insane! 
We need more transparency and accountability from these universities, not less. This whole situation reeks of privilege and elitism 
. I mean, can't they just listen to their students' grievances instead of resorting to heavy-handed tactics? 
Campus closures might cause revenue loss, but isn't student trust and well-being worth more than that 
? And what's with this "domestic violent extremism" excuse 
? It sounds like a cop-out to me. The power dynamics at play when outside law enforcement is brought in are all wrong 
. It's ridiculous that university officials are relying on LEMA funds to bring in outside cops just to squash peaceful protests 
I'm so disappointed to hear that California public universities used a law enforcement mutual aid system meant for natural disasters to suppress pro-Palestine protests. It's like they're trying to erase free speech on campus 
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. It sounds like they're trying to silence marginalized voices instead of listening to their concerns 
. Now it seems like universities are just trying to control the narrative and quash dissent 
. It's sad, man 
. Using state funds to bring in outside law enforcement agencies to quell student-led protests undermines the whole purpose of education – open discussion and debate 
. The real issue here is that universities are trying to police (no pun intended) free speech and silence marginalized voices 
just read about Cali public universities using $25 million LEMA funds to quell pro-Palestine protests 
and now we know more than 20k pages of docs show this is happening across the UC system 
it's not just about pro-Palestine stuff either, but also other types of activism that challenge university admin 
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. I mean, what even is that supposed to mean? And can we talk about the fact that civil liberties advocates are saying that this undermines trust between students and admins? Like, it's clear who's really losing control here 
It's heartbreaking. I think it's time for these universities to rethink their approach to student activism. Instead of bringing in the big guns, they should be having a real conversation with their students about what's going on and how to address the issues. This militarized policing thing needs to go 
.
students are already scared enough with all the craziness going on outside, they shouldn't have to deal with that from within their own institutions 
. The use of militarized policing in these situations only serves to escalate tensions, leading to radicalization and physical harm to protesters 
my heart goes out to all the students who got hurt or radicalized by this