The Detroit Justice Center (DJC) stands in solidarity with the pro-Palestinian protesters at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor (U of M) who are facing criminal charges from the Michigan Office of the Attorney General (MIOAG). While the Attorney General’s Office claims that they are overseeing these cases because they are “multijurisdictional”, all of the charges took place in Washtenaw County. This escalation to the state level is a misuse of power and leads us to believe that these protesters are being politically targeted as we have seen in several instances at university campuses across the country.
Since our inception, DJC has called for the defunding and dismantling of our broken policing system; in the case of these protests, law enforcement acted as a militarized force against marginalized communities and their allies. In an official statement from the MIOAG, AG Dana Nessel is quoted as saying, “Our laws everywhere are designed to make safe communities and encourage respectful coexistence.” Community safety does not entail police in riot gear pepper spraying peaceful protesters and sending them to the hospital with concussions, respiratory distress, and broken bones.
Our organization is dedicated to building more equitable and just cities, and we see our struggle as interconnected with everyone fighting against systemic oppression. These charges represent an impediment to First Amendment rights everywhere. Peaceful student protesters should not have to live in fear of felony criminal charges; it is evident that these protesters are being targeted as a warning to anyone who might seek to join their movement. We are calling upon MIOAG to drop the charges against these protesters.