Pro-Palestine SJP Responds To Being Suspended By Rutgers

NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ — On Wednesday, the Rutgers chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) responded to Rutgers' decision this week to temporarily suspend the student group.

Rutgers University decided to suspend SJP (Instagram: @sjprutgersnb) on Monday. The school said it received numerous complaints that SJP protests have been disrupting students studying, attending classes and eating meals in campus dining halls. Rutgers also said SJP protests have "threatened the safety" of other students. Thirdly, SJP recently held a protest inside the business school in Piscataway, and Rutgers Police are now investigating vandalism that may be connected to it.

SJP called all of these "nebulous" allegations, and countered that Rutgers is restricting their right to freedom of speech, and their right to peaceably assemble.

"On December 12, Students for Justice in Palestine learned we were suspended by Rutgers University when a reporter asked for comment on the leaked document of suspension," the group said in this statement. "None of the allegations are substantiated by date, testimony or description of incidents. The allegations reflect 'complaints' by other Rutgers students, faculty or staff, which may be no more than a speech disagreement."

SJP said that in the past two months of the Israel-Hamas war, they have held peaceful protests in designated "free-speech" areas of campus and held study sessions at the Rutgers library, where they displayed signs reading “Divest (from Israel) Now.”

SJP also said they held multiple sit-ins, but always dispersed at the command of Rutgers Police.

"This attempt to conflate protected speech with violence is dangerous," said the student group Wednesday. "The administration’s letter contributes to the perception of Arab and Palestinian students on campus as terrorist threats, a racist and unacceptable caricature. These allegations lodged against our group, with no due process, are attempts to silence Palestinian voices."

You can read SJP's entire response here.

On Tuesday, North Jersey Congressman Josh Gottheimer (D) praised Rutgers' decision to suspend its SJP chapter:

Columbia University, George Washington University and Brandeis University have all suspended SJP chapters on their campuses. Rutgers is the first publicly funded university to suspend the group. A Rutgers chancellor warned Tuesday that while students are allowed to protest, students who violate university code or break the law could be expelled and face criminal charges.

"While Rutgers is a public institution that protects and values free speech and an open exchange of ideas, this exchange cannot come at the expense of individual and campus safety," said Chancellor Francine Conway in this Dec. 12 public letter.

Also this week, federal officials launched a discrimination probe at Rutgers Newark as tensions continue to rise on college campuses over the Israel-Hamas war.

SJP wants to know who leaked their suspension letter to the media

SJP maintains that someone in Rutgers administration leaked their suspension letter to the press on Monday, before they or their advisor had even seen it.

"Again, SJP found out it was suspended when student organizers were contacted by New Jersey and national press," they said. "When we contacted our advisor appointed by the administration, she too was unaware of the letter and suspension."

SJP is calling for Rutgers to identify and terminate the administrator who leaked the suspension letter to the media.

Meanwhile, SJP says Rutgers has failed to investigate a complaint they made against Rutgers Chabad, which they said put up a social media post with an SJP protest in the background captioned "children of darkness, STRAPPED. ARMED. LOCKED AND LOADED."

SJP also said Palestinian and Muslim students on campus have submitted bias reports of "the constant harassments and attacks they have faced since October 7."

"This includes the Palestinian student who submitted a report against a professor who cornered and began to record them in response to a coordinated walk-out ... which the Palestinian student took no part in," said SJP. "The professor subsequently accused SJP of disrupting the event, though it played no role in the incident. For all we know, we could be suspended based partially on this false accusation. We consider the administration’s selective enforcement ... a racist double-standard. Rules seem to be stringently applied only when Palestinian students are organizing for freedom and bringing awareness to the inhumane crimes that Israel commits every day."

"This is even more frightening in light of the recent shooting of three Palestinian students in Vermont. The Rutgers administration has consistently failed to protect us with the same rigor and public concern they have for other students."

Rutgers Suspends Students For Justice In Palestine Group (Dec. 12)

Israel-Palestine: Feds Probe Alleged Discrimination At Rutgers Newark (Dec. 13)