Pro-Palestine protesters and IU officials had another heated exchange in the Indiana Memorial Union Wednesday.
Demonstrators sat quietly during a meeting between faculty from the Luddy School of Informatics and IU President Pamela Whitten. When it adjourned, they began chanting pro-Palestine slogans and calling for the university to divest from Israel and to end its partnership with the Crane naval base.
Read more: Tense encounter between protesters and police ends in de-escalation
IU security chief Benjamin Hunter told protesters they could be arrested for trespassing if they continued to chant in the hallway. Protesters challenged his assertion that their protest disrupted university business since the meeting had ended.
“Do you guys not feel bad for doing this? Like, this is your job is stifling free speech,” one protester said.
“Actually, we’re not stifling free speech,” Hunter replied. “We’re having a lot of dialogue, which is good.”
Read more: IU Trustees to review campus climate amid controversies over Whitten's leadership
Like a similar encounter on Tuesday, protesters agreed to leave after a long conversation with the officials. An IU police officer followed them out.
Demonstrators chose the listening session as a demonstration site because they knew Whitten would be present.
They had hoped to address her directly, but the President entered and left the room without passing through the main door.
Read more: At listening sessions with President, faculty say they’re fed up
