“There’s no possible way to get to class… ” is the circulating remark.
While the Spring 2024 encampments were enacted in Royce Quad, misinformation has plagued opinions both within UCLA and outside of its walls and has unfortunately become a substitute for the truth. The convolutions run so deep that the truth is now buried within walls far more “inaccessible” than the encampment itself.
Although the fact that students were stopped at a check in is true, students were never asked to denounce their faith. The Students Justice for Palestine made it clear that all students – regardless of race, religion, or organizational affiliation – had to wait in the line. This was not by any means on the basis of discrimination, but rather for safety reasons. Anyone was welcome so long as they complied with the rules and anyone who did not was turned away.
To clearly illustrate this point, the 2023-24 Muslim Student Association President states that he was also turned away and told to wait in the line while other protestors were checked in despite knowing a majority of the organizers. There was no special treatment being given out.
Furthermore, there are several encampment protestors who spent time with Jewish UCLA students within the area. One Jewish-American 4th year was quoted on April 30th, 2024 stating the following:
“I’ve been here this entire time and I’ve never been victimized or ostracized for being Jewish. I was interested in seeing what was happening on the inside. A lot of the information on Palestine has been secretive. I wanted an authentic version of history.”
The checkpoints, which have been labeled an “obstruction of access”, were not to target any one specific group, but rather protect the diverse group of students inside the encampment. Several encampment participants state that the checkpoint was beneficial as it provided community guidelines and ensured people were staying safe and respectful with one another.
Calling the encampments a “Jewish Exclusion Zone” is simply twisting the narrative and convoluting a protest which encouraged solidarity into something hateful and discriminatory.