The provided article from wsws.org details a protest and subsequent violent police crackdown that occurred at Virginia Tech in late May 2024. Students had erected an encampment on the university’s Drillfield to protest the university’s investments in companies profiting from the conflict in Palestine and to demand greater transparency.
The university administration, after initially allowing the encampment, declared it an unlawful assembly and ordered the protesters to disperse. When the students refused, police in riot gear moved in, deploying tear gas and physically confronting protesters. Several students and at least one journalist were arrested. The article strongly condemns the university’s response and the police actions, describing them as an attack on democratic rights and a form of repression.
The article places the event within a broader context of similar crackdowns on pro-Palestinian protests at universities across the United States. It argues that these actions reflect a growing authoritarian trend within the state apparatus aimed at suppressing dissent and protecting the interests of the ruling class. The author asserts that the Virginia Tech administration, acting in concert with state authorities, sought to silence opposition to US foreign policy and its support for Israel.
Finally, the piece touches upon Representative Jerry Nadler’s criticism of the Trump administration for “behaving like fascists” in a *New York Times* interview following an unspecified incident.
find the original article here: https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2025/06/03/vtum-j03.html