NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — Tuesday night on and off the campus of Christopher Newport University, people supporting Palestine and people supporting Israel were seen and heard peacefully protesting.
Like many people on college campuses around the country in recent days, they were expressing their thoughts on the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.
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“Everyone who is not here protesting with us, everyone who is standing with Israel, standing with apartheid, should be ashamed of themselves," said protester Geoffrey Cotton.
“It’s stunning to see the amount of hatred that’s in people today," said protester Rabbi Eric Carlson.
Wednesday, all was quiet, but that doesn’t mean the protests were over.
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“I think we’re just seeing the start," News 3 political expert Dr. Eric Claville said.
Claville believed a presidential election being about three months away by the time students return to campuses for the fall semester later in the year will inspire continued protests.
“We’re going to see a lot more activity, a lot more protests, a lot more energized activity on both sides," Claville said.
The idea of using the National Guard to respond to protests on college campuses has come up in discussion in recent days.
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“We’ve seen in history that definitely does not work," Claville said.
On a national political talk show, Virginia U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine said he is not in favor of using the National Guard. But when asked about this by News 3, in a statement Kaine said, in part, there needs to be some control.
“People have a First Amendment right to make their voices heard on issues that matter to them and should do so in accordance with university policies and local and federal laws. Some colleges and universities are having discussions about Israel and Gaza in a way that is civil and constructive, and I encourage our higher education institutions to work with students to ensure they can express their point of view and maintain a safe environment.”
“One great thing about the United States of America is free speech," said Claville. "Another great thing about it is our university system, which actually fosters free speech on our campuses. So it becomes very interesting, it becomes delicate balance, for university administrators and stakeholders to balance free speech but also offering the services in which they are there for. That’s to educate."
Claville believes calling in the National Guard is a possibility.
“For the most part, I think a lot of people who are making decisions, even the general public, we forget what happened because it happened so long ago we think we can get a different result," Claville explained. "So I think it’s very possible, if we see protests on campuses start to escalate and not become peaceful and they become more aggressive or violent, I think you can possibly see the National Guard called in.”
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“We don’t plan to stop coming out here," Cotton said. "We will stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people, with the Palestinian resistance."
"With this hatred, aggression, anti-semitism, bigotry we’re going to stand in the gap for truth," Carlson said.
Claville said with 2024 being a presidential election year, the election being so contentious, and people being so politically divided, he encourages anyone making decisions or participating in activities like campus protests to really think before they act.
