By Charletta Royster-McNeish, UCLA
Many influential educational institutions throughout the country had encampments, sit-ins, teach-ins, and walkouts to protest the 2023 Israel-Hamas armed conflict. Places like Harvard, Yale, Berkeley USC just to name a few. Campus life at UCLA was interrupted and detoured by a protest that prevented students from walking or driving near Royce Hall. Royce Hall is the center of campus with an attractive landscape and backdrop. Students had formed an encampment on the lawn of Royce Hall. Social justice movements start with a single action or resistance. Proud Bruins and the canting of courter-protesters eliminated any efforts for a peaceful demonstration. What had turned into a peaceful and permitted demonstration ended up on primetime news. Over a hundred arrests were televised and streamed on the local news. Although an attempt was made to de-escalate, the administration acted on what they felt was protecting the students from future harm and restoring peace to campus.
Impact
The juxtaposition of campus protests reminisced memories of my own experiences growing up during the Watts and LA Riots. What happened during the student protest left a lasting impression on campus life and changed the campus climate. More on-duty officers patrol the yards echoing a prison or panopticon of surveillence. These stressful times make it difficult to stay focused on studies, especially when more demonstrations, protests, and walkouts are happening.
Call to Action
Dialogue helps the healing process by promoting common goals while fostering an understanding to restore trust. Dialogue creates a space for open engagement where students and administration can settle differences and find solutions that benefit the school spirit.