After over 50 people were arrested at a protest at University of Texas at Austin, Gov. Greg Abbott (R) is being accused of using excessive force.
Police in riot gear dispersed a spontaneous but peaceful demonstration at the state’s main university on Wednesday.
One of those arrested was a journalist from the local Fox 7 news affiliate. The news organization stated that the journalist has been charged with criminal trespassing.
Protesters have planned another day of demonstration for Thursday.
The students had urged UT to stop investing in arms manufacturers and U.S. and Israeli companies benefiting from Israel’s war in Gaza. The university has an estimated $52.5 million invested in arms manufacturers.
Students and off-campus supporters gathered before noon in a protest that the university had forbidden. They chanted slogans like, “Free, free Palestine. Killing children is a crime,” according to Texas Public Radio.
There were differing opinions among Jewish students on campus about whether this was offensive.
Texas Hillel, the Jewish student union, described the protests as “hateful” because they took place during Passover, the Jewish festival of freedom.
Others disagreed. “They’re not saying anything antisemitic, they’re not bothering anyone, they’re standing on the grass, expressing themselves,” Jeremi Suri, a Jewish UT-Austin history professor, told The Texas Tribune.
“The appropriate response would be to ask them to stay in a specific area, let them remain on the grass and let them shout until they have no voices left,” Suri added.
However, Abbott decided to bring in the state troopers.
On Wednesday, Abbott posted on the social platform X, labeling the protests as antisemitic and calling for the university to expel participating students. Meanwhile, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick (R) has made addressing alleged antisemitism on campuses a top priority for the next legislative session.
“Today, Greg Abbott’s [Department of Public Safety] is more willing to arrest peaceful student protesters than when an active shooter entered an elementary school in Uvalde,” state Democrats stated Wednesday evening.
The party referred to the crackdown as an Abbott “campaign ad.”
A Democratic state representative from Austin called the response “excessive.”
“When I was a student, I participated in a ‘sit in’ [with the Rev. Jesse Jackson] INSIDE the UT law school, and the administration just ignored us,” state Rep. Gina Hinojosa, (D-Austin), wrote on X.
A group of UT professors released a statement criticizing university president Jay Hartzell’s decision to bring in the police.
The administrators mentioned that the event “was meant to include teach-ins, study sessions, pizza, and an art workshop. There was no threat of violence, no intention to disrupt classes, and no intimidation of the campus community.”
In response, they stated, “we have seen police physically assaulting a female student, knocking over a legal observer, pulling a student over a chain link fence, and aggressively arresting students for simply standing at the front of the crowd.”
The arrest of the Fox photographer was strongly criticized by local journalists.
Ryan Chandler of KXAN mentioned that if the photographer is guilty of criminal trespass, then many other journalists, who were peacefully recording on a public lawn, would be guilty as well. wrote on X.
Criticism of Abbott's campaign against Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programs, which the state government had called anti-free speech, also came from libertarian and right-wing groups who had previously supported Abbott.
The legal director of Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), Will Creeley, pointed out that sending in a large group of law enforcement officers threatens protected speech, especially at a public university like UT Austin. wrote after the arrests,
FIRE, a longstanding critic of DEI, stated that Abbott's use of police to disperse the demonstration clearly shows his disregard for the First Amendment's protection of political speech.
The crackdown that followed Abbott’s controversial March executive order, which critics characterized as a reversal of broad free-speech protections he signed into law in 2019.
In March, the governor signed an executive order directing universities to change their free speech policies to properly punish antisemitic speech — a category state Republican leadership applies to criticism of the war in Gaza.
Chris Rufo expressed concern about the provisions highlighted in Governor Abbott’s executive order, while showing commitment to fighting antisemitism on campus. wrote at the time.
Rufo asked how such a policy is different from DEI programs promising to prohibit 'anti-black speech,' and why 'anti-white speech' is not included, as it is institutionalized at University of Texas.
Writers at the far-right magazine The Federalist labeled Abbott’s March executive order as an endorsement of “the DEI cult” with its “demands for Jewish safe spaces.”
According to Muslim students, the university hasn’t protected them from abuse and assault on campus.
Earlier this month, three men assaulted a Muslim student wearing traditional dress while mocking him in “fake Arabic,” according to a complaint filed by the Council of American-Islamic Relations. Muslim students told the press the university hasn’t protected them from abuse and assault on campus. filed by the Council of American-Islamic Relations.
Texas Republican leadership has long combined strong support for Israel’s right-wing government with a complicated relationship with antisemitic groups on the state’s far right.
Last year, a leading state PAC aligned with state Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) changed its name and fired its director after video surfaced of him meeting with white nationalist Nick Fuentes, a vocal fan of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler and a proponent of a “holy war” against Jews. its name and fired its director after video surfaced of him meeting with white nationalist Nick Fuentes, a vocal fan of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler and a proponent of a “holy war” against Jews.
After the video came to light, Republican recipients of the PAC’s donations in the state Legislature countered criticisms and calls to donate the funds by expressing their support for Israel, as reported by The Hill. by espousing their support for Israel, as The Hill reported.
The PAC gave $3 million to Patrick before the 2023 impeachment of Paxton, one of his allies.
Facing criticism about the donation, Patrick announced he would use it to purchase Israeli bonds.
In December, the state Republican committee voted 39-32 to continue allowing members to meet with groups that are known for supporting or tolerating antisemitism, pro-Nazi sympathies, or Holocaust denial. They removed a statement of support for Israel that would have forbidden such meetings. as per The Texas Tribune.
Half of the board also decided not to keep any record of that vote.
By voting against a proposal that would have limited such meetings, members expressed concerns about freedom of speech. They said that banning such meetings was similar to “Marxist” tactics.
Committee member Dan Tully told the Tribune that banning the meetings “could put you on a slippery slope.”
Following the arrests on Wednesday, a local journalist from the left-wing Texas Observer pointed out the apparent inconsistency between the state’s broader response to antisemitic speech and its crackdown on the college demonstrations.
“I’ve seen no credible reporting of actual antisemitic incidents at the UT Austin protest,” Steven Monacelli wrote on X.
“What I can tell you is that I’ve reported on numerous neo-Nazi events and Greg Abbott never once tried to put any of them in jail.”
