Around 30 pro-Palestine protesters gathered Saturday in People's Park for a teach-in, march and rally in support of Palestine and to protest IU's investment with Naval Surface Warfare Center — Crane Division.
The march down Kirkwood Avenue coincided with the final day of the Granfalloon Festival, which one speaker said was done intentionally to encourage festival-goers to join the march.
IU Police cars occasionally drove past People's Park during the teach-in, and one IUPD car parked on the sidewalk east of Sample Gates when protesters demonstrated outside Bryan Hall.
The demonstration comes six weeks after the IU Divestment Coalition established a pro-Palestine encampment in Dunn Meadow. Indiana State Police and IUPD arrested 57 protesters April 25 and 27 after IU changed a 1969 policy April 24 to ban temporary structures in Dunn Meadow without prior approval. The protesters arrested also received at least a one-year ban from campus. Nearly all arrested protesters had their criminal charges dropped May 31, and 51 of them have had their campus bans overturned, according to Indiana Public Media.
Protesters returned to the meadow around 5:30 p.m Saturday. As of Saturday afternoon, there were 30 tents in the encampment and two tents of unknown affiliation set up on the west side of Dunn Meadow.
Two women argue with pro-Palestine protesters June 8, 2024, in People's Park in Bloomington. During the exchange, which lasted around 20 minutes, the women told protesters to "go to Gaza" before one gestured with her middle finger as they left down Kirkwood Avenue.
A speaker gives a speech during a pro-Palestine teach-in June 8, 2024, at People's Park in Bloomington. The teach-in covered Palestinian artwork and the history of People's Park, including the 1968 fire bombing of the Black Market and police crackdown on the presence of unhoused people in the park.
A pro-Palestine protester speaks through a megaphone as others hold up banners and signs during the Granfalloon Festival on June 8, 2024, on Kirkwood Avenue in Bloomington. The speaker said the protesters were not against the festival and wanted to invite attendees to join their march.
A pro-Palestine protester holding a cardboard sign looks back while walking toward Sample Gates June 8, 2024, on Kirkwood Avenue in Bloomington. Protesters briefly stopped on the sidewalk next to the Granfalloon Festival's stage before continuing down the street.
A pro-Palestine protester stands in the crosswalk directing traffic before other protesters cross the street June 8, 2024 on Kirkwood Avenue. The protesters' march lasted around 30 minutes, garnering cheers and applause from some attendees from the Granfalloon Festival.
A pro-Palestine protester blocks traffic while other protesters cross the street June 8, 2024, on Kirkwood Avenue in Bloomington. Protesters were encouraged on social media to wear red to show IU President Pamela Whitten the U.S. has crossed a "red line" by supporting Israel.
Pro-Palestine protesters gather June 8, 2024, in front of Sample Gates in Bloomington. One IU Police car parked on the sidewalk east of Sample Gates and observed the rally.
Dunn Meadow's pro-Palestine encampment organizer Bryce Greene gives a speech to pro-Palestine protesters at Sample Gates from across Indiana Avenue on June 8, 2024. Greene was banned from IU campus for five years following his arrest for criminal trespass April 27, 2024, although the Monroe County Prosecutor's Office has since declined to pursue charges against him.
Pro-Palestine protesters walk on the sidewalk on Indiana Avenue on June 8, 2024, toward the encampment in Dunn Meadow in Bloomington. Around 30 tents were set up in the meadow, as of Saturday evening.
