Sign up for Weekday J and get the latest on what's happening in the Jewish Bay Area.

Students began pitching tents on campus lawns and plazas in protest of Israel at universities across Northern California in late April, following a national trend and calling to mind mass student movements of the past, including the anti-Vietnam War protests that started in the mid-1960s.

Unlike those protests, however, the current wave has come with significant complications for the Jewish community. The protests have been marred by allegations of anti-Israel animosity, making Jewish students with even the slightest connection to Israel feel unwelcome. On one occasion, a pro-Israel Jewish student was punched in the face. Another protest sent a campus into a weekslong lockdown.

In conversations with students and professors at the region’s campuses and after reviewing often widely shared photos and video, a complex portrait has emerged, showing, at times, peaceful protests calling for an end to a brutal war in Gaza that has killed tens of thousands — and, at other times, expressions of venomous hatred toward Israel, outright antisemitism and support for Palestinian “resistance” by any means necessary, including terrorism.

UC Berkeley

“The protesting community is diverse,” said Ron Hassner, a UC Berkeley professor. Hassner, who is the faculty director of Cal’s Helen Diller Institute for Jewish Law and Israel Studies, recently garnered national attention for holding a two-week-long sit-in in his university office in March to protest his university’s response to antisemitism on campus since Oct. 7.

Anti-Israel demonstrators set up an encampment in Sproul Plaza, a main campus thoroughfare, on April 22. Since then, they have been sleeping in tents and holding daily demonstrations, calling on the university to “divest” from Israel and cut ties with the Jewish state.

Many of the protesters are “young students who have no relationship to the Middle East, who are neither Muslim nor Jewish, who are enjoying a good old Berkeley protest in the good old Berkeley tradition,” said Hassner. Not mincing words, he added: “And many of them are violent, genocidal maniacs.”

By April 24, the “Free Palestine Camp” at Cal had grown to about 70 tents from just a handful two days prior.

“It’s been a rapid expansion,” an unnamed organizer from the UC Berkeley Divest Coalition, which has been running the encampment, told J. The student wished to remain anonymous, as many pro-Palestinian demonstrators have, for fear of repercussions for their activism.

Inside the camp, students chatted, drank coffee and did homework on laptops. But the campground atmosphere was at odds with the words of a young woman giving a talk on what to do if confronted by police: keep your student ID on hand, make sure your phone has a passcode and don’t volunteer information. “They can lie to you,” she said.

The camp was taking donations and posted a list of requests online, from hot coffee to batteries to money, warning potential donors to “make sure you are bringing BDS-friendly items!” — a reference to the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against Israel.

Meanwhile, pro-Israel Jewish students have raised concerns about the protest, which is being allowed to proceed by the university administration. The academic year ends on May 10.

Etched in chalk on a wall below the encampment on April 28 was the phrase “Avenge the Martyrs,” scrawled next to two inverted red triangles. The symbols have been used by Hamas in propaganda videos to highlight Israeli military targets. Since Oct. 7, the triangles have become popular internet shorthand, like a meme or emoji, that “in certain cases can signify support for violent Palestinian resistance against Israel,” according to the Anti-Defamation League.

A large printed banner, roughly 30 feet wide, hung above the steps of Sproul Plaza that said “Victory to the resistance!” and included the same inverted red triangles.

Daniel Solomon, a Jewish doctoral student in history, described a disturbing visit to the encampment on April 28.

He walked near the camp while recording on his phone. Demonstrators approached him, holding a Palestinian flag over his camera lens to block it. They engaged in a heated and, at times, head-scratching, conversation recorded on video. A demonstrator told Solomon that Zionists should “go back to Europe.” When asked whether he knew what had happened to the Jews of Europe, the protester replied, nonchalantly, “The Europeans freakin’ got em.”

“These people have been allowed to essentially run roughshod over any notion of decency or community or rules for months,” Solomon said. “They have created a climate on campus which is deeply hostile and menacing to many of us.”

Other students reported troubling encounters with protesters, too.

Noah Cohen, a third-year law student, was punched in the face by a non-student demonstrator on campus on April 26. The demonstrator had told Cohen he could not film during a Muslim prayer session on Sproul Plaza. Cohen replied that it was his right to do so. The demonstrator, who called herself Jay, followed Cohen as he sought an administrator or police to intervene. Cohen could not find one, and when Cohen began walking back to the protest, Jay grabbed his backpack and swung at him, he said, grazing the left side of his face. The incident is partially captured in a chaotic cell phone video.

“Jesus Christ, you just punched me in the face,” Cohen says after appearing to fall down. “You can’t punch people!” He filed a police report, and the university police department said it is investigating the case.

Asked whether he thought the protests were peaceful, Cohen said, “It’s peaceful until you don’t comply.”

“It’s peaceful if you follow everything these random people are telling you to do. It was peaceful for me until I wanted to film. And then it wasn’t peaceful,” he added. “And if someone wanted to walk into the entrance of California Hall with an Israeli flag on their back, it definitely would not be peaceful.”

Dan Mogulof, a university spokesperson, told J. that campus police were “definitely investigating” the incident and that Chancellor Carol Christ had personally reached out to Cohen after the incident to ensure he is able to “access whatever supportive services he might need from campus.”

Mogulof also said that Cal has increased university “monitors” on Sproul Plaza in response to that incident and was offering escorts to those who feel unsafe traversing the plaza.

In general, UC Berkeley has taken a hands-off approach to the encampment, while certain other prestigious, well-known universities have not. Police have conducted mass arrests of more than 1,500 people since Apr. 18, CNN reported, at universities like Columbia, NYU, Princeton, Yale, USC, UT-Austin and other campuses across the country.

Many at Cal remember the ugly confrontation between police and student protesters in 2011, when officers used violence to break up an Occupy Wall Street encampment, drawing allegations of police brutality.

“We’ve seen on our campus in the distant past, or not so distant past, that utilizing law enforcement can have unintended consequences that can make matters worse, and can blow back to the detriment of the wider community,” Mogulof said. “We are prioritizing students’ academic interests and have committed to taking the steps necessary to ensure the protest does not disrupt the university’s operations.”

Among the protesters’ demands are that Berkeley divest financially from companies linked to Israel and enforce an “academic boycott” of the country. The university has pointed out that its endowment is controlled by the University of California Regents. On the question of a boycott, Cal leadership, including the chancellor, have stated their opposition on multiple occasions.

Stanford University

Students pitched tents and established a so-called “People’s University for Palestine” on April 25 at Stanford’s White Plaza, complicating an April 25 to 27 event when students who’ve been admitted to Stanford were scheduled to “learn about life” as an undergrad.

About 20 tents popped up outside the student union over the course of the next few days, the San Francisco Chronicle reported, describing a somewhat convivial atmosphere where students shared meals, played music and conducted learning sessions.

Stanford has taken a different approach to the encampment than Cal. The day after the tent city sprang up, Stanford told students they would be subject to disciplinary action, or even arrest, if they did not disperse.

“We want to be clear with students who are involved in these activities that, while we understand their perspectives on an important global issue, violations of university policy will not be overlooked,” according to a statement signed by outgoing President Richard Saller and Provost Jenny Martinez.

“Tents and overnight camping pose multiple safety challenges, including the need for 24-hour security,” the statement said. “The tents themselves can also pose safety hazards, as was discussed in winter quarter.”

Apparent calls for violence and other harsh language have concerned a number of Jewish students on campus, according to the director of Stanford Hillel. Videos show protesters holding signs reading “No peace on stolen land” and “Stanford kills children.” A widely shared photo showed a demonstrator wearing a Hamas headband — drawing an outpouring of criticism on X (Twitter).

“The ‘pro-peace’ party at Stanford is wearing Hamas headbands,” wrote Luke Schumacher, a Stanford law student. “Stop gaslighting – stop telling us these protests are about peace & justice.”

Rabbi Jessica Kirschner, director of Stanford Hillel, said that “students, like everybody, have the right to peaceful protest.” She noted that the encampment contains a “small number” of quite vocal Jewish students but that the “vast majority” of Jewish students want little to do with it.

“The places where we are running into real problems are when [protesters] are in violation of university policies,” like camping overnight, she said. “And when the things that are said create an environment that is alienating and deeply othering to Jewish and Israeli students.”

Kirschner pointed to a double standard, saying that in her view, “the ways in which the language around these protests so quickly slides into antisemitism and a kind of anti-Israel bias” would not be tolerated if directed toward any other group.

Despite the warning of disciplinary action, protesting students stayed put as of April 30.

Deputies with the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office visited the camp earlier but made no arrests, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

San Francisco State University

At SFSU, a campus that’s seen its share of controversy over strident displays of anti-Zionism and allegations of antisemitism, tents began to go up midday on April 29, a week after UC Berkeley’s.

The encampment coincided with a rally against Israel.

“I’m surprised that it took us this long,” said Marc Dollinger, head of Jewish Studies at the university. “I thought we’d be one of the first in the country.”

Dollinger was at the protest to keep track of what was happening, he said, with an eye to protecting his students.

He said the encampment, which had grown to six tents and two shade structures when he was there, seemed well organized and “well disciplined,” with people in reflective vests helping to wrangle the crowd. By May 1, the encampment had grown to 70 tents.

“Everyone is being nonviolent,” Dollinger noted on April 29.

Students were shouting a number of chants, some of which Dollinger said he found harmless — but not all, including a call for intifada and revolution. He pointed out that he expected the tent camp to grow, but he wasn’t sure how long it would last, considering that the academic year is almost over. Finals begin May 18.

“I’m just curious, when the semester ends, how many folks are going to go home and how many won’t,” he said.

University of San Francisco

At the University of San Francisco, a private Jesuit university, a handful of tents sprang up on the vibrant green grass of the school’s central lawn on April 29.

Video on social media showed a student rally among the tents proclaiming a “people’s university” and voicing calls for an end to the “financial, political and cultural support for the Israeli genocide.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by PYM Bay Area (@bayareapym)

On Instagram, the students said they “stand in solidarity with the Palestinians as they fight for their liberation from Israeli, American and Western oppression” and requested that the university end “Israeli occupation-affiliated” endowments and academic partnerships.

University spokesperson Kellie Samson told J. that the university is “engaged in conversation” with those protesting.

“The USF administration expects to continue these critical conversations,” she said.  “Our students have a right to peacefully protest as well as a responsibility to abide by the university’s code of conduct.”

Cal Poly Humboldt

The most dramatic and violent pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel campus protests in Northern California in recent weeks took place on the Arcata campus of Cal Poly Humboldt, formerly Humboldt State.

The campus became California State Polytechnic University Humboldt two years ago. According to its website, about 5,900 undergraduates attend the school, which has a relatively small Jewish population of about 150 students, according to estimates from Hillel International. There is not a Hillel house for the campus.

A confrontational group of protesters, whom the university said included people unaffiliated with the university, sent the campus into a weekslong lockdown after they occupied two campus buildings on April 22 and barricaded themselves inside.

The protest completely upended the university, scuttling in-person classes and events and moving all learning online.

“The safety, health, and wellbeing of our students is paramount as the situation has become increasingly complex,” according to a statement emailed April 24 to J. from director of news and information Aileen Yoo. “There are unidentified non-students with unknown intentions, in Siemens Hall. This creates an unpredictable environment.”

Protesters’ demands included that Humboldt “disclose all holdings and collaborations” with what demonstrators referred to as “the Zionist entity” and “cut all ties with Israeli universities,” according to Humboldt for Palestine, a group that said it supports the protest but did not organize it.

Video captured April 23 by Humboldt County freelance journalist Ryan Hutson showed a throng of young people standing face to face with police, who were wearing protective gear, as officers attempted to enter a building barricaded with desks and chairs. The protesters screamed, “We are not afraid of you!” and other chants.

In a mass of bodies, they attempted to block police from entering the building. Police pushed back using their protective shields, as protesters hurled objects at officers. One protester began thwacking police with an empty five-gallon jug. Police fought back with batons, striking demonstrators, before eventually retreating.

Police were able to “restore order” in the early morning hours of April 30, according to the university. Thirty-one people were arrested “without incident, and there were no injuries” during the 2:30 a.m. raid of two campus buildings, Siemens Hall and Nelson Hall East.

“The operation was carried out by Unified Command, which is made up of law enforcement personnel from throughout the State of California under the leadership of Humboldt County Sheriff William Honsal and University Police Department Chief Peter Cress,” the university said. Students were told to shelter in place as the operation was conducted.

The campus is set to remain effectively closed to non-essential in-person gatherings through the end of the semester on May 10. Athletic events and activities have been relocated.

“The University supports free speech through open dialogue that is respectful and constructive,” the university said in an April 24 statement. “That does not include behavior that involves destroying and damaging property, and disrupting students, faculty, and staff from learning, teaching, and working.”

Cal State Sacramento

Tents sprang up at Cal State Sacramento on April 29, according to social media posts and the Sacramento Bee. According to a statement sent to J. by university spokesperson Lanaya Lewis, Sac State’s Division of Student Affairs has given permission for the protest camp to remain until May 1.

“If they are still present, the university will reassess at that time,” according to the statement.

Sonoma State University

At Sonoma State University in Rohnert Park, tents went up April 26.

According to the Press Democrat, antisemitic chalk messages were found on the campus, prompting a response from university President Mike Lee.

“Sonoma State University draws the line at depictions of intolerance and hate on our premises,” he said in a statement sent to J. “They poison our atmosphere.”

University spokesperson Jeff Keating told J. in an email: “Some of the messages written in chalk on the sidewalk in front of the encampment were disturbing and anti-Semitic in nature. Students in the encampment removed them sometime Sunday night/Monday morning.”

Ryan England, a Sonoma student and president of the campus chapter of Jewish fraternity AEPi, told J. that one message, which AEPi posted about on social media, was at the school’s Holocaust memorial site and stated “is not real.”

England’s fraternity had booked a spot to set up a table for a fundraising project where the tent encampment went up but decided to move to a different spot, he said. “We kept to our business, doing our own thing,” he said.

England said people came from the encampment to rally where he and the other fraternity tables were, chanting and holding signs, including those equating Zionism with fascism. It upset some Jewish and non-Jewish students, he said.

“Everyone was pretty shocked and a lot of people were in tears,” he said. But he added that campus staff came by to check on the Jewish fraternity table and thanked them for remaining civil.