The Conservative Cave

Update: as of 8 p.m. April 30, Cal Poly Humboldt says 32 people have been arrested.

Some names have been changed to protect identities.

After a week-long pro-Palestine protest at Cal Poly Humboldt, multiple law enforcement agencies descended onto campus grounds on Monday around 10:00 p.m. An audio message blared through a sound system strapped atop a University Police Department vehicle threatening use of plastic, rubber bullets, and chemical agents on protesters for over five hours. Eventually, around 3:30 a.m., hundreds of police officers dressed in full riot gear swarmed campus, arresting over 30 protesters, including students and at least one Cal Poly Humboldt professor.

On Monday evening, April 22, protesters took control of the quad area, Siemens Hall, and Nelson Hall. Over the course of a week, entrance points to the quad had been fortified with dumpsters, chairs, doors, office furniture, tape, rope, and chain. Tents filled the grassy areas surrounding Siemens and Nelson Halls. Chalk, markers, and spray paint covered both pavement and wall surface-areas with messages making the protesters’ conviction and commitment to their cause clear: “Free Gaza,” “Stop Funding Genocide,” “Silence is violence.” were among the messages written by protesters.

Despite a coordinated police response surveillance system set by the protesters, the exact time the police would arrive, remained unclear. The inevitable police response finally arrived around 10 p.m. on Monday, with a University Police Department vehicle threatening protesters with rubber, plastic bullets and chemical agents should they refuse to disperse from campus grounds.