Student protesters at the Oxford University Gaza encampment have slammed their institution's standing saying it has placed them in danger.
Students Amytess Girgis and Kendall Gardner have been on site for days and told the Oxford Mail there had been a lot of support.
READ MORE: Police officer sacked for high speed driving and lying about training
"It's been 10 days now and we knew there was a lot of support in the community, but I don't think we anticipated how absurd the momentum would be," Ms Girgis said.
"At this point we've had hundreds of people coming through camp wanting to help in some way."
Ms Girgis is a Rhodes Scholar, while Ms Gardner is a Marshall Scholar - both DPhil students in politics.
Ms Gardner has also been one of many Jewish protestors on site - having led a Kiddush prayer on May 11.
The pair said more than 550 faculty and staff have signed a letter in support of the student Gaza encampment with the number of motions coming from college common rooms "exploding".
"Then yesterday, (May 16), 14 unions in Oxfordshire have endorsed the encampment - which is fantastic," Ms Girgis said.
The ongoing camp on the lawn outside Pitt Rivers Museum has sparked a response from Oxford University Vice-Chancellor Irene Tracey.
She said she was grateful the protests had been "largely peaceful" in a detailed statement to students and staff.
"Whilst I am grateful that protests have been largely peaceful, we have heard directly from some members of the University and the public that they have been feeling fearful or uncomfortable as a result," the statement read in part.
"As an academic institution, we are committed to freedom of speech and we embrace peaceful protest.
"However, we do not accept any hostility or intolerance directed at our members."
Protestor Ms Girgis said the vice-chancellor's statement was "entirely vacuous" and was part of the motivation for a big rally on May 16.
"If admin came to the table and met our demands we'd be out of here," Ms Girgis said.
"No one enjoys camping but we fully intend to continue organising until our demands are met."
Asked if their protests had caused disruption to the university events, Ms Girgis said they had “disrupted the violence of normalcy” and were bringing attention to Gaza.
“That is disruptive for some people,” she said.
The students said they had not been contacted directly by the university after a group of men attended the Gaza encampment in an alleged attack.
A spokesperson from Oxford University had confirmed to the Oxford Mail that security would be heightened as a result of the incident in which a group of men allegedly yelled abuse at the student protestors, with allegations also of physical attacks.
“That was a huge point of concern – that the increased security – they didn’t coordinate with us,” Ms Girgis said.
Ms Gardner said they did not ask for the increased security and had not seen a change since the university announcement.
The pair claimed the university had continued to misrepresent them and “spread lies about who we are and what we stand for” and that this “actively put us in danger”.
Ms Gardner said the camp was "not a fun endeavour" and they continue to encounter people daily who "are not happy about what we're doing".
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel