UPDATE: The UWM for Palestine Coalition told WTMJ that it has scheduled a press conference for Monday, August 5 to address the suspensions. No further comment was provided.
UPDATE: University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents President Amy B. Bogost and Vice President Kyle Weatherly have issued a statement regarding the suspension of student groups at UWM.
“The July 19 statement from the uwm4palicoaltion was on its face threatening and reprehensible, and it cannot be tolerated. The communication created fear among students, longstanding campus partners, and the wider campus community. We unequivocally reject any such intimidation and tactics.
“UW-Milwaukee took the appropriate action to exercise its authority by suspending the five associated student groups while an investigation is underway. Our universities have a fundamental responsibility to ensure the safety and security of our students and campus community, and we expect student organizations and their members to do the same.”
MILWAUKEE – The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee announced Wednesday afternoon that five student organizations have been temporarily suspended due to “intimidating language” directed at Jewish students, community members, and organizations.
The five groups are Students for Justice in Palestine, the Muslim Student Association, Students for a Democratic Society, Young Democratic Socialists of America and Un-PAC, which the university notes were all part of the UW Popular University for Palestine coalition in the spring during the protests that included the tent encampment on the university’s campus.
The suspension stems from a post on Instagram by the uwm4palicoalition account on July 19, which said “Any organization or entity that supports Israel is not welcome at UWM” and called Hillel and the Jewish Federation of Milwaukee “extremist organizations.”
The post ended by saying “stay tuned,” and the university said that a subsequent post reaffirmed the message in the first post.
The university initially responded the next day and confirmed it was investigating the post and student organizations involved with the coalition, before announcing the suspensions this afternoon.
“UWM strongly denounces these statements and denounces any form of antisemitism, and we will be actively monitoring campus as a result. Every student, employee and community member must be safe on our campus,” UWM said in their initial statement.
UWM has not announced the length of the suspensions or what the organizations need to do to be reinstated.
WTMJ has reached out to student organizers with the coalition for comment. This story will be updated with their response.
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