June 18, 2025 The Newspaper Serving LGBT Los Angeles

UCLA Student Protesters Set Up Gaza Solidarity Sukkah at Dickson Court North

Graduate Students for Justice in Palestine, Jewish Voice for Peace Lead Protest 

Today, UCLA students held a protest with tents called the Gaza Solidarity Sukkot Encampment at Dickson Court North. The encampment was set up on Monday morning. At about 10:00 a.m., a campus security liaison arrived and, according to social media posts, “asked the students to take down the ” According to the social media account UCLA Radio, the protest was led by organizers from Graduate Students for Justice in Palestine at UCLA, joined by Jewish Voice for Peace UCLA (JVP). 

As an explanation, Graduate SJP posted this message on their Instagram account, “Sukkot, Festival of Booths, Is a Jewish Harvest Holiday. Observers Dwell in a Sukkah, a Temporary Hut, for 7 Days. This Sukkot, as the Genocide of Palestinians Continues and Millions of Gazans Are Displaced Yet Again, We Recommit To Fighting for Their Liberation. All Who Believe in Justice and Liberation for Palestine Are Welcome at This Interfaith Observation of Sukkot.” 

A social media user who saw pictures from the scene commented that they thought they could not still be shocked, but the destruction of a Sukkah was appalling. 

The UCLA Police Department posted on Twitter “We are aware of an unauthorized demonstration in Dickson Court North that started around 8:45 this morning. There are currently about 30-40 people and it’s impacting some walkways. We have officers in the area monitoring the situation. We’ll keep you updated.”

However, Dickson Court North is a quad that can easily be walked around and does not lead to any important buildings. The sidewalks form an X in the middle of the quad, but nothing in the quad or nearby can only be accessed through the quad. 

Around 4:00 p.m. UCPD officers stopped in Dickson Court North to take pictures of demonstrators at the Gaza Solidarity Sukkah. Organizers have since hung a banner between two trees in Dickson Court that reads “UCLA, who do you protect?”

Around 5:30 p.m. UCPD officers entered the courtyard in riot gear but soon left while protesters chanted, “Cops off campus.” At 8:00 p.m. a large crowd of counter-protesters gathered outside the Sukkah, taking videos of demonstrators and shouting insults. They then attempted to rush into the Sukkah, while police in riot gear were seen nearby. 

The UCPD Twitter account announced that “officers announced a dispersal order just after 8:30 p.m. tonight at an unauthorized demonstration involving about 40 people at Dickson Court North. Almost all of the protestors left the area.” One protester was arrested for failure to disperse, according to the UCPD social media posts. While the police demanded that the protesters leave, the counter-protesters jeered, “It’s over. Get out.” 

The police and maintenance men broke down the Sukkah and loaded it into a truck, while UCPD officers, CSC officers, and Apex Security guards blocked off the entire area from Dickson Court to Portola Plaza and Charles E. Young Drive south to Thayer Avenue. Ironically, the police were the ones blocking student access to school areas on Monday night. 

According to a social media statement around 12:30 a.m. Graduate SJP said, “Jewish and non-Jewish students at UCLA set up a sukkah and demanded that UCLA stop profiting off of the genocide of Palestinians by divesting from weapons manufacturers and other companies facilitating occupation and apartheid. Students held teach-ins. painted banners, and ate under the sukkah while campus security repeatedly harassed them and tore down their banners.”

“In the evening, zionists attacked the sukkah, hurling slurs at Jewish students, joking about blowing them up, and cheering on the impending riot police. Students valiantly attempted a defense of the sukkah, but zionist aggressors ripped apart the sukkah and desecrated the shelter while chanting homophobic slurs. As police advanced, students dispersed for their own safety.”

in NEWS
Related Posts

Justice Served by the Slice: L.A. Chefs Rally for Pies for Justice Fundraiser

June 18, 2025

June 18, 2025

Sweet, Savory, and Pizza Pies to Support Foster Youth and Civil Rights Chefs and restaurants from across Los Angeles and...

Downtown Santa Monica Goes All Out for Family-Friendly Pride Celebration

June 17, 2025

June 17, 2025

SaMo Pride’s Biggest Celebration: Live Music, LGBTQ+ Vendors, Giveaways Downtown Santa Monica will come alive with color, music, and celebration...

Trump Executive Order Lets VA Doctors Deny Care to Trans Patients or Marital Status

June 17, 2025

June 17, 2025

New VA Policy Tied to Anti-Trans Order May Allow Refusals of Treatment Medical professionals across the Department of Veterans Affairs...

Journalist Files Lawsuit After Being Hit by ‘Less Lethal’ Munition Fired by Sheriff’s Deputies

June 17, 2025

June 17, 2025

LASD Faces Legal Claim After Journalist Wounded at Anti-Ice Rally  Independent photojournalist Nick Stern has filed a civil rights claim...

CAP UCLA’s 2025–26 Season Spotlights Queer Voices, Global Visionaries, and Musical Trailblazers

June 17, 2025

June 17, 2025

The New Lineup Celebrates Boundary-Pushing Performances Across Disciplines The UCLA Center for the Art of Performance (CAP UCLA) has announced...

Cedars-Sinai Seeks Public’s Help Identifying Unconscious Man Found in Beverly Grove

June 17, 2025

June 17, 2025

Man Remains Hospitalized After Being Discovered Near Cedars Sinai Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is asking for the public’s assistance in identifying...

US Marines Temporarily Detain Civilian Near Federal Building in West Los Angeles

June 17, 2025

June 17, 2025

Military Confirms First Known Detention by Active-Duty Troops Deployed by Trump U.S. Marines temporarily detained a civilian near the Wilshire...

Judge Orders NIH to Reinstate LGBTQ+ Health Research Grants Cut Under Trump Policies

June 17, 2025

June 17, 2025

Federal Court Finds Dei-Related Grant Cancellations Unlawful; Ruling Restores Funding Funding for hundreds of medical research projects, including critical studies...

GLAAD and eBay Launch Celebrity Auction for Pride Month, Up for Bid Through June 26

June 16, 2025

June 16, 2025

Exclusive experiences with Shakira, Orville Peck, Andy Cohen, Dylan Efron, and More  GLAAD and eBay have joined forces to launch...

Tyler Malek Celebrates New Ice Cream Cookbook With Sweet Pop-Ups in West Hollywood

June 16, 2025

June 16, 2025

Chef to Appear at Book Soup and Debut Limited-Edition Matcha Sandwich at GGiata Tyler Malek, co-founder and head chef of...

(Video) Home Front Build Maintains Original Architectural Vision For Modern Homes

June 16, 2025

June 16, 2025

For More Information, Go to homefrontbuild.com For More Information, Go to https://t.co/kip9luQwxX pic.twitter.com/sTuVgfiGkj — Palisades News (@PalisadesNewsLA) June 16, 2025

Nearly One Thousand Rally in West Hollywood to Protest ICE Raids and Trump Policies

June 16, 2025

June 16, 2025

‘No Kings’ Demonstration Draws Large, Peaceful Crowd Through the Rainbow District West Hollywood was the site of another ‘No Kings”...

Tribeca Premiere Honors Carl Bean, Musician, Activist and LGBTQ+ Faith Leader

June 15, 2025

June 15, 2025

New Doc Features Interviews With Lady Gaga, Billy Porter, and Dionne Warwick The life and legacy of Archbishop Carl Bean,...

Americans Split on Immigration and Tariffs’ Impact on Housing Affordability, Survey Shows

June 15, 2025

June 15, 2025

Survey Finds Over Half Believe Less Immigration Could Drive Up Home Prices  A new Redfin-commissioned survey reveals that U.S. homeowners...

Two Suspects Arrested in Fatal Stabbing of Elderly Man in Hancock Park

June 15, 2025

June 15, 2025

LAPD and FBI Apprehend Palmdale Pair Accused of Killing 84-Year-Old LAPD West Bureau Homicide has arrested two suspects in connection...