This wave of protests highlights the enduring clash between student activism and concerns about campus safety and order. Observers note it revives memories of past student movements like those against the Vietnam War, which were met with repression and, in cases like the 1970 Kent State shootings, deadly police violence.

Provost Francis Doyle sent an email to community members about University policy surrounding encampments on Tuesday afternoon. The email comes amid a series of national protests calling for a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas and on universities to divest from weapons manufacturers and companies affiliated with Israel.

Hundreds of Northwestern students joined nationwide protests against Israel’s war in Gaza on Thursday, prompting school administrations to abruptly change campus policies and ban tents or other temporary structures in previously public spaces.