[Editor’s Note: This article was written before a deal was reached to end the pro-Palestine encampment on the University of Oregon campus, which occurred May 22 at around 8 p.m. Further information on the agreement to end the encampment can be found on the Daily Emerald website.]
With spring term coming to an end, graduation ceremonies are right around the corner. All the while, the pro-Palestine encampment on the University of Oregon’s campus entered its fourth week.
Following the cancellation of main graduation ceremonies at schools such as Columbia University and University of Southern California, as well as recent student walkouts at other ceremonies, UO seniors are facing uncertainties surrounding their own graduation.
Some of the uncertainty surrounds the possibility of protests at UO’s ceremonies.
“It seems like the encampment’s demands still aren’t being met so they seem to keep ramping up and I feel like graduation is such a big event that something definitely might happen then,” senior Ellie Orr said.
“It feels almost taboo to talk about because I think there’s an overwhelming amount of support for the encampment and for protest on this campus that I think a lot of seniors, myself included, are pretty worried about graduation,” senior Zoe Taylor said.
Taylor said that being a part of the class who lost their high school graduation in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic comes with a worry for another interrupted — or canceled — graduation.
Senior Noah Glick, a Jewish student, said that the encampment should be “out of sight” during graduation, though the encampment is a “political issue that does warrant a lot of attention.”
“It takes away from the moment, and I think also if there’s a lot of stuff going on during the weekend of graduation, all these graduates have worked so hard to celebrate this moment, I think it would be pretty crass to take that away,” Glick said.
Following the encampment’s relocation from the Memorial Quad to the lawn in front of Johnson Hall on May 16, the grass on the quad was blocked off for “turf restoration.”
According to UO spokesperson Eric Howald, “efforts to restore the lawn will begin before commencement, but the area will be available during commencement celebrations.”
Howald said that graduation ceremonies will take place closer to Knight Library and will not be impacted by the encampment. Department Commencement Ceremonies that will be taking place on Memorial Quad on June 16 include Comparative Literature at 10 a.m., Multidisciplinary Science & Neuroscience at 1 p.m. and English & Folklore at 4 p.m.
“I think it is pretty foreseeable that it does escalate to commencement ceremonies and I think it’s really frustrating and scary that the university hasn’t said anything in preparation for that,” Taylor said.
A demonstrator carries a Palestinian flag as they begin to pack up the encampment on May 22, 2024. After weeks of protest, the 24-day-long encampment demonstration saw its end after negotiations teams from the encampment and the University of Oregon reached an agreement to end the encampment in exchange for meeting some student demands, including "No adverse action" for "protected speech" activities, a call for a ceasefire in Gaza, and more. (Alex Hernandez/Emerald)
