Around 180 other campuses around the country also participated in a National Day of Action to defend higher education.
(Alaina Davis/WTIU News)
This story has been updated.
Protesters at Indiana University returned to Dunn Meadow on Thursday afternoon following five hours of speeches and songs in Franklin Hall.
It was believed to be the first protest at Dunn Meadow since it closed to repair damage from last spring’s pro-Palestine encampments. For decades, Dunn Meadow has been the site of protests at IU.
Professors, students and staff representing unions, scientists, foreign language programs and pro-Palestine groups rallied against threats to higher education such as student deportations, cuts to science and the humanities and the Trump administration’s targeting of campus speech.
They also marked the launch of The People’s 2030, a common platform for groups pushing for what it describes as “united resistance” at the university. It is a counterpoint to IU 2030, the administration’s long term plan.
Nationally, 178 other campuses participated in a National Day of Action to defend higher education.
IU history professor and AAUP Bloomington Chapter member Maria Bucur urged the campus to band together with universities nationwide.
“We really are at a crossroads in terms of how we think about our responsibility as an institution of higher education: towards our students, towards the public in Indiana and generally, as the brain trust of the greatest export that the United States has,” she said.
Organizations such as the AAUP, Palestine Solidarity Committee and Jewish Voice for Peace are mainstays at IU protests, but for some speakers it was their first time participating.
One member of the IU Board of Trustees, Vivian Winston, showed up to support the protest groups. Winston will step down this summer, and she reflected on her tenure on the board.
“As a trustee, I have fought hard for three years to maintain the excellence of IU, and that was some success and some failure,” she said. “I hope all of you will keep working, to keep living, to keep Bloomington the wonderful shining star that it has always been.”
Chair of the computer science department Yuzhen Ye spoke out on behalf of her fired colleague XiaoFeng Wang, questioning IU’s investigation into his alleged research misconduct.
“As you can tell, this is a very, very new experience for me,” Ye said. “But I think it’s important to speak up at this moment.”
IU hasn’t commented on Wang’s firing, which violated the process for tenured faculty. Wang was terminated the same day his home was searched by the FBI, and his wife was fired several days before.
“I'm really saddened that IU just terminated someone's appointment after this many years of dedicated contribution to the school,” Ye said.
The event ended with demonstrators walking to Dunn Meadow for a short round of chanting. April 25 will mark one year since the start of protests that led to a confrontation between pro-Palestine demonstrators and police.
A group of around 50 marched from Franklin Hall to Dunn Meadow for a short rally. Next week will mark the one year anniversary of the Dunn Meadow encampment and the ensuing pro-Palestine protests. (Devan Ridgway, WTIU)
