Dozens of people idled at an encampment protest at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Monday. Students and other community members sat on blankets chatting while another small group sat around a woman dancing with a keffiyeh, a traditional Arab headscarf. The tents were set up Sunday after a march urging the university to divest from Israel.
Elsewhere, a protest at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg resulted in 82 arrests, including 53 students, a university spokesperson said Monday.
Protesters began occupying the lawn of the graduate life center Friday, the university said in a statement. The gathering violated university policy, the university said, but was a “safe and peaceful environment” over much of the weekend.
After protesters took further steps to occupy the lawn and outdoor spaces next to a nearby student center Sunday, the university said the situation “had the increasing potential to become unsafe” and advised those gathered to disperse. Those who failed to comply were warned they would be charged with trespassing, the university said.
