Petition Tag - students and staff

We, the undersigned, urge the Orange County District Attorney’s office to drop its prosecution of the eleven University of California students, now known as the “Irvine 11,” who last year protested the speech of the Israeli Ambassador to the United States, Michael Oren.

A year ago, in February of 2010, these eleven students interrupted a speech by Oren at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), in order to voice their dissent from Israeli policies. The protest was nonviolent. No one was injured, no property was damaged, and Michael Oren was able to complete his speech after the students were escorted out. Subsequently, all eleven students were thoroughly punished to the satisfaction of their respective campus administrations through suspension, probation or other sanctions. UCI also banned the Muslim Student Union from any campus activities for the fall quarter of 2010, followed by two years of probation.

Among the Irvine 11 are three students from our campus, the University of California, Riverside (UCR). Despite the academic and disciplinary sanctions already in place, your office has now announced that all eleven students are being charged with conspiracy to disrupt a public speech.

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