The Philadelphia and Pittsburgh chapters of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Pennsylvania) denounced the University of Pennsylvania for violently disbanding the encampment on campus and calling on the Philadelphia Police Department (PPD) to arrest student protesters opposing the ongoing genocide in Palestine. CAIR-Pennsylvania also condemned Governor Josh Shapiro for his remarks in Pittsburgh yesterday where he encouraged UPenn to remove the encampment.
In a statement Dr. Ahmet Tekelioglu, Executive Director of CAIR-Philadelphia said: “Gov. Shapiro once again displayed his anti-Palestinian bias by calling on violence against peaceful protestors when local politicians and clergy had urged and worked towards a facilitated negotiation process between the students and Penn Administration. University of Pennsylvania should be ashamed of yet another example of its disregard for its own community’s demands and well-being. We stand in solidarity with these courageous peaceful protestors.”
Christine Mohamed, Executive Director of CAIR-Pittsburgh, added: “Governor Shapiro’s stance is not only misguided but deeply concerning. To suggest that the exercise of constitutional rights is contingent upon government approval is an affront to democracy. This attempt to strip away fundamental freedoms under the guise of safety is a blatant abuse of power. We will remember this betrayal of public trust at the polls. The people will not forget.”
See: ‘Past time’: Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro calls on Penn to disband pro-Palestinian encampment
https://www.thedp.com/article/2024/05/penn-shapiro-encampment
Yesterday, CAIR-Philadelphia denounced University of Pennsylvania’s decision to ban 6 encampment students from campus and the ongoing threat of police violence on students.
See: CAIR-Philadelphia Denounces University of Pennsylvania’s Decision to Ban 6 Student Protestors from Campus, Ongoing Threat of Police Violence on Students
https://pa.cair.com/pressrelease/upenn-ban-students
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Contact: CAIR-Philadelphia Executive Director Ahmet Tekelioglu, PhD., atekelioglu@cair.com, 617-401-5397; CAIR-Pittsburgh Executive Director Christine Mohamed, cmohamed@cair.com, 412-606-3601.