Syracuse University administration said a parent was arrested Sunday after a verbal altercation toward students in the Gaza Solidarity Encampment.
Allen Groves, Senior Vice President and Chief Student Experience Officer, and Craig Stone, Associate Vice President and Chief Campus Safety and Emergency Management Services, said in a message to campus that a small group of individuals, including three parents, approached the encampment.
"Witnesses say one parent was especially aggressive in his verbal treatment of the students," Groves and Stone said. "When asked to de-escalate by Student Experience staff, the parent refused, escalated to grabbing and tossing students’ food from a table, moving signs, and continuing to verbally berate the students in the protest space."
The parent was arrested after the Department of Safety intervened and the parent refused to de-escalate and leave campus.
The university officials said they do not believe there was physical contact with the student protestors. They said the student protestors remained peaceful at all times during the incident.
"Harassing behavior or conduct from anyone that creates a safety concern will not be tolerated," Groves and Stone said.
DPS and members of the student experience team are remaining on campus to focus on the safety of all students.
The Syracuse Police Department is investigating a separate incident from Saturday afternoon following a pro-Palestine rally near campus where an individual is alleged to have made a Nazi gesture and punched a student.
