Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein was among more than 100 people who were arrested on Saturday during a pro-Hamas protest at Washington University in St. Louis.
Stein's campaign manager, Jason Call, confirmed to Fox News that he, Stein and deputy campaign manager Kelly Merrill-Cayer were all arrested at the encampment on the campus.
"The demand from the encampment was specifically for the university to divest from Boeing, which manufactures munitions used in the ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza at their nearby St Charles facility," Call said to Fox News. "The Stein campaign supports the demands of the students and their peaceful protest and assembly on campus. Student protest for peace and civil liberties has always represented the best part of our collective moral conscience. Solidarity."
BREAKING: Jill Stein and her Campaign Manager and Deputy Campaign Manager, Jason Call and Kelly Merrill-Cayer, have been arrested at Washington University in St. Louis while supporting a protest against WashU’s ties to the war on Gaza.
— Dr. Jill Stein🌻 (@DrJillStein) April 28, 2024
Video from @KallieECox pic.twitter.com/rkUYC9b5Qx
In a statement, the university explained that “a large group of individuals entered the Washington University campus with the intention of causing a significant disruption to the university” on Saturday (via Fox 2 Now):
It quickly became clear through the words and actions of this group that they did not have good intentions on our campus and that this demonstration had the potential to get out of control and become dangerous. When the group began to set up a camp in violation of university policy, we made the decision to tell everyone present that they needed to leave. We arrested 100 individuals who refused to leave after being asked multiple times. This number includes 23 WashU students and 4 university employees. All face charges of trespassing and some may also be charged with resisting arrest and assault, including for injuries to three police officers who sustained injuries including a severe concussion, a broken finger, and a groin injury.
In the past week, pro-Hamas encampments have occurred at universities all across the country. At Columbia University, students have been arrested and suspended for their involvement, including Minnesota Democrat Rep. Ilhan Omar’s daughter.
