Student Protestors Hold Commencement Demonstration on Capitol Steps
The vigil occurred one night after Boise State’s Spring 2024 Commencement ceremony
By Jaime Geary // 05/10/24
Student protestors stood in silence on the Idaho State Capitol steps on Sunday, May 5, for a demonstration they described as a “Commencement ceremony.” The vigil took place the evening after Boise State University’s Commencement festivities on Saturday, May 4. Protestors waving Palestinian flags accompanied the students.
A local student protestor holding a doll wrapped in swaddling clothes who referred to themselves as “Lucy” for safety concerns revealed the demonstration was meant to mourn the deaths of children and college students in Palestine and the decimation of all 12 of Gaza's universities by Israeli military occupations and air strikes.
“There’s no universities left in Gaza anymore,” Lucy said. “We just wanted to honor the people who were unable to graduate because they were martyred.”
The Boise State students and their fellow protestors departed from the steps to sit on the lawn of Ada County’s Old Courthouse adjacent to the Capitol Building. The protestors formed a circle around a flower-laden memorial dedicated to young people who have died from the conflict, trading stories, songs, and chants. A person wearing a Boise State graduation gown arrived on the scene to join the circle.
The commencement vigil carries the collegiate theme of the protest taking place next to the Capitol. Lucy confirmed the vigil is connected to a larger effort that began Friday afternoon called “The People’s University”, organized by Boise State Students for Palestine in coalition with other pro-Palestine activist groups in the city.
The effort consists of multiple tents positioned outside the Old Courthouse containing books and food that host events intended to support the protestor’s cause. The tents and their contents are “a symbol of Palestinians who do not have their homes because they’ve been bombed,” explained a Boise State freshman who referred to themselves as “S.”
“They don’t have any things… So, we can use this as a symbol of what we’re fighting for,” S said.
“I think a lot of people here are definitely confused on the narrative, especially what’s being pushed in mainstream media,” Lucy said.
Other “People’s University” pedagogical protests are occurring around college campuses worldwide, from Cambridge to Canada. Referencing these protests, Lucy contextualized that the student organizers from Boise State “were taking inspiration from the movement that is happening globally.”
“This movement is really happening everywhere,” said Sam Pinson, a recent Boise State graduate. “And the fact that it’s in a small city in a red state and there’s people here showing up for Palestine really goes to show how powerful this movement is.”
The purpose of the commencement vigil and the larger protest is to condemn Israel’s actions in Gaza and seek immediate action from local institutions in Idaho. Pinson cited “the role that our government plays in that genocide.” He explained that he both the State of Idaho and Boise State University to identify and relinquish any potential connections to Israel through tuition money or tax dollars.
Pinson was concerned by Boise State’s response to students “seeking to use our free speech.” Boise State sent a message to all student email accounts on Friday afternoon signed by President Marlene Tromp, detailing the university’s decision to close campus in anticipation of potential demonstrations “related to conflict in the Middle East.” Pinson called the university’s warning of “arrest or campus disciplinary actions” towards protestors on campus during Commencement a “certainly disappointing” decision.
Pinson confirmed that conflict occurred during the protest off-campus. “I don’t know if I’m comfortable giving specific accounts. But there were instances of violence from the march from the Anne Frank Memorial to here,” Pinson said. “The Boise Police Department was absolutely attempting to intimidate us.”
The protestors repeatedly emphasized they were observing nonviolence in all their demonstrations.
KTVB reported that police persisted in engaging with the protestors throughout their setup on Friday night, disassembling tents and threatening arrests. Pinson and his fellow protestors confirmed that the police sectioned off the parking lot across from the protest, frequently attempting to disassemble the gathering.
“They were wearing riot gear. They were, you know, coming by the truckload. There were dozens of them if I remember correctly,” Sam said.
KTVB reported that the police’s actions led the protestors to file a temporary injunction against the Boise Police department, intending to affirm their right to remain on the site. A protestor was arrested the night of May 10 for resisting arrest; they were released on bond the following morning.
“The fear sort of transitioned into a sense of empowerment, I think, and defiance,” Pinson said.
Despite rain washing away chalk drawings and counter-protestors appearing to shout at the crowd, the “People’s University” continues to occupy the side lawn outside the Old Courthouse.
A United Nations press release estimates approximately 35,000 Palestinians in Gaza have died due to Israel’s military campaign against Hamas.
“The amount of people who have been murdered, it’s two and a half times the size of the Extra Mile Arena,” Lucy said.
Update 08/05/24: published online, minor grammatical corrections.