About 100 community members gathered outside the Alexander G. Ruthven Administration Building Wednesday afternoon, where U.S. Representative Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., who represents Michigan’s 12th Congressional District, joined organizers calling on the University of Michigan to divest its endowment from companies tied to the Israeli government and to stop what speakers described as administrative repression of pro-Palestinian speech.
The noon press conference, titled “United Against Genocide, United Against Repression,” followed months of demonstrations over the ongoing Israeli military campaign in Gaza, including a weeks-long encampment in the spring of 2024 and subsequent disciplinary and legal proceedings, which were dropped in May. Regents previously said the University does not take institutional positions on political matters, including divestment.
Stephen Ward, associate professor of Afroamerican and African Studies, served as the emcee for the event and introduced a lineup of speakers, including students, union leaders and recent alumni facing disciplinary charges related to various demonstrations over the past three years…