The DePaul Divest Coalition’s pro-Palestinian encampment was dismantled on its 17th day on Thursday, May 16, by more than 100 Chicago police officers and the Office of Public Safety at about 5:30 a.m. Later that day, the coalition held a press conference and rally emphasizing their goal for DePaul to divest. The rally marched from the Monsignor Egan statue outside of the Lincoln Park campus Student Center and around the campus on Fullerton Avenue before ending by the statue once again. Here are photos of the day’s events.
A CPD officer stands across the intersection of Sheffield Avenue and Belden Avenue from the pro-Palestine rally on May 16, 2024. The rally followed CPD and the Office of Public Safety clearing DePaul’s pro-Palestine student encampment earlier that morning.
A pro-Palestine demonstrator speaks through a megaphone to protestors across the street from DePaul’s Quad on Thursday, May 16, 2024. CPD and the Office of Public Safety began clearing the encampment around 5:30 a.m. earlier that day.
A pro-Palestine protestor wearing a keffiyeh to cover their face stands in front of the rally at DePaul’s Lincoln park campus on Thursday, May 16, 2024. Protesters marched down Sheffield Avenue holding banners, signs and flags while chanting phrases like “Disclose, divest, we will not stop, we will not rest.”
CPD and DePaul Public Safety director Bob Wachowski stand on the Quad after the encampment’s removal in the early hours on Thursday, May 16, 2024. A garbage truck and grounds equipment was brought in to begin repairs to the Lincoln Park Quad.
Jon Hein, CPD Chief of Patrol, addresses the press after the removal of the encampment on the Quad on Thursday, May 16, 2024. He said multiple orders were given by DePaul and CPD ordering protesters to leave the encampment.
Pro-Palestine protestors stop during the rally to do the Maghrib prayer shortly after sunset outside DePaul’s Quad on Thursday, May 16, 2024. During DePaul’s pro-Palestine encampment, the daily schedules posted on the DePaul Divest Coalition’s Instagram page included times for group prayers, including the Maghrib prayer.
A pro-Palestine protester ties a keffiyeh around the neck of the Monsignor Egan statue outside of the DePaul University Student Center on Thursday, May 16, 2024. Etched on the base of the statue is the Vincentian question “What are you doing for justice?”
A pro-Palestine protester waves a Palestinian flag on Fullerton Avenue during the rally on Thursday, May 16, 2024. Over 300 demonstrators walked around DePaul’s Lincoln Park campus while neighborhood residents and CPD officers watched.
A DePaul grounds worker cleans up the Quad after the police dismantled the pro-Palestine student encampment May 16, 2024. All belongings left on the Quad after the encampment was cleared were disposed of, according to a DPU alert that day.
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