Oct 7

Oct 7 Marking One Year (III)

Chicago, Demonstrations, Performance, Protest, Public Declarations

At 2:00 PM today, a group of 100 students held a pro-Palestinian rally in St. Vincent’s Circle, a green alcove just to the east of the Fullerton Quad. The program was led by and almost all of the speakers were female students. I estimate at least two-thirds of the participants were female.

Unlike many pro-Palestinian demonstrations, this one had the feel of a memorial service, which is appropriate following a year that has seen so much death and destruction in Gaza. Several women gave speeches, and I thought I heard at least one prayer in Arabic.

During the service, several participants opened two large trash bags filled with shoes. Two or three people arranged pairs of the shoes in a circle in front of a statue of St. Vincent de Paul conversing with two young people. Members of the assembly took other pairs, walked solemnly to a grassy area behind the statue, and gently placed the shoes on the ground. Each pair seemingly represented a person who had perished.

One woman read a list of names, all infants and children who had been killed in Gaza. She referred to them as martyrs—if I recall correctly she prefaced the word “martyrs” with the word “our.” Shortly thereafter, someone announced that the Chicago Police Department had ordered the crowd to disperse or face arrest.

Two police officers were standing in the alcove and several others were positioned on the walkway lining the Quad. Their demeanor was reserved and non-confrontational. I assume detainee transport wagons and more police officers were positioned out of sight. The police never displayed the laminated signage that they hold up ordering demonstrators to disperse or face mass arrest.

Two groups of students responded by heading toward the Quad carrying two banners. The other students assembled behind the banners, and then the group peacefully marched south toward Belden Avenue. As they marched, one woman recited some sort of prayer in Arabic—I meant to ask her for a title and some context, but lost track of her among the marchers. When the group reached Belden, they then headed east to Sheffield Avenue, where the Student Center is located.

When they arrived at the statue of Monsignor John J. Egan, the students were ‘greeted’ by some 20 police officers on foot and bicycle, but there was no indication that the police were there to stop the resulting demonstration, which included the typical speeches and chants. Instead, the police directed traffic and established a protective perimeter. I stayed for about 20 minutes, but decided to leave before the demonstration ended because no new ground was being covered and I assumed there would be no disruptive behavior.

The students apparently did not seek the now requisite approval to hold a demonstration on DePaul’s campus. Given what unfolded in St. Vincent’s Circle, DePaul’s Administration made a strategic blunder.

Following all of the commotion that transpired on college campuses last spring, DePaul’s administration must have been nervous about what might breakout on the anniversary of the October 7th attack by Hamas. Major newspapers have published countless articles reporting on how college administrators and students are dealing with the return to campus while the war in Gaza still rages.

Everyone has been waiting for students to defy college administrators by erecting new encampments. Yet, today, no one was unpacking tents or chanting loudly. Instead, the atmosphere was eerily serene (without a hint of ‘trick or treat’ in the air).

As a lawyer, I understand why DePaul’s administration called CPD to disburse the demonstrators. In the face of new guidelines and requirements for campus demonstrations, DePaul’s legal counsel may have advised that the best course was to enforce the restrictions despite the peaceful nature of the event, thereby heading off subsequent allegations of selective enforcement should there be future activity that the administration deems inappropriate and wants to immediately shut down. It is too bad the students didn’t seek the necessary approval if they didn’t do so.

In closing, I should note that a group of Jewish students built a memorial in the student center using “Kidnapped” posters. Unfortunately, i was unaware of that effort until I saw video on the 10 PM ABC Channel 7 newscast.

[Click on an Image to Enlarge It. The Images Are Not Necessarily in Exact Chronological Order]