SAN DIEGO — Protests against the war in Gaza entered a second day on the campus of UC San Diego on Thursday.
On Wednesday students set up an encampment outside the Geisel library. A makeshift fence was put up around about thirty tents.
"Even with graduation going on and stuff like that, people still have time to think about bigger and better things," said UCSD junior Nina Barnes, as she walked by the encampment on her way to work.
"I just think since we're Americans and we have certain freedoms and liberties we should be able to think outside of ourselves," she added.
Campus police as well as administrators looked on. They told CBS 8 things remained peaceful overnight.
UCSDivest Coalition as well as Students for Justice in Palestine are calling on UC San Diego to cut ties with companies connected to the war in Gaza. They also want the school to speak up and denounce the war.
"Of course we're worried about our safety and we really hope the school decides to prioritize the students safety. A lot of the people here are students and they're passionate people and care about the cause," said Faze Ali, a junior at UC San Diego.
Students for Justice in Palestine posted a program for Day 2 on social media. It includes banner making, prayers and movie night.
A Palestinian father outside of the tent encampment barrier got emotional as he talked about how more than a dozen of his family members have been killed in Gaza.
"Why are we killing those people? Why are we enabling the criminals, the genociders, with our own tax money, our tax money," said the father.
He was born in Rafah, in the southern Gaza strip, and says he is proud of his Jewish friends and faculty standing in solidarity with Palestine.
"It's the most injustice that you can ever imagine," he added.
Protesters pointed to a time in history when the students demanded the UC system divest funds during the South African apartheid. In the 1980's during the South African anti-apartheid movement there were sit-ins and protests. In 1986, The UC Regents voted to divest $3.1 billion from companies doing business with the apartheid government. It was the largest university divestment in the country.
UCSD Chancellor Pradeep Khosla issued a statement on Wednesday that read in part,
"Our focus remains squarely on maintaining a safe campus environment free from discrimination and harassment and continuing the operation of our academic mission without disruption. We implore all campus community members to treat each other with dignity and respect.
We remind all students, faculty and staff that sanctions for violating university policy and/or the law can include interim suspension, suspension, dismissal or legal action. "
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