About 150 students marched with Palestinian flags and chanted anti-war slogans
Armed forces graduates continued speeches emphasizing commitment to protecting freedoms
No arrests made during protest but at least 61 incidents recorded at US campus protests since April 18
Protests were a response to Israeli attacks on Gaza that destroyed every higher education campus since the conflict began
Reem Hassan, a Palestinian American graduate, shared personal connection to conflict as her extended family unable to visit since war started
Students called for university divestment from companies with ties to Israel
University of Michigan students protested Israeli conflict during commencement on May 4, 2024
During the University of Michigan's commencement ceremony on May 4, 2024, a group of students and graduates demonstrated in solidarity with Palestinians affected by the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. About 150 students marched through Michigan Stadium carrying Palestinian flags and chanting anti-war slogans such as 'No universities left in Gaza' and 'Divest from Israel now! Free Palestine!' The protests were a response to Israeli attacks on Gaza that have destroyed every higher education campus since the conflict began, according to Palestinian news reports. Students also called for the university to divest from companies with ties to Israel.
University spokesperson Colleen Mastony stated that no one was arrested during the protest and it didn't significantly disrupt the ceremony, which was attended by tens of thousands of people. However, at least 61 incidents of arrests have been recorded at campus protests across the U.S. since April 18.
Reem Hassan, a Palestinian American business graduate, shared her personal connection to the conflict as her extended family in Jerusalem and the West Bank of Palestine have not been able to visit each other since the war started.
Despite these protests, armed forces graduates continued their speeches at the ceremony, emphasizing their commitment to protecting freedoms that they cherish. The right to protest peacefully was also upheld during the event.
About 75 protesters marched up the main aisle of Michigan Stadium during the University of Michigan’s commencement, chanting anti-war messages and holding Palestinian flags.
Students are protesting the war’s death toll and calling for universities to separate themselves from companies advancing Israel’s military efforts in Gaza.
At least 61 incidents of arrests have been recorded at campus protests across the U.S. since April 18, with over 2,400 people arrested on 47 college and university campuses.
Accuracy
Israel has destroyed every university in Gaza
At least 5,479 students, 261 teachers, and 95 university professors have been killed in Israel's deadly war on Gaza.
Hamas abducted about 250 people during the conflict.
Israel says it still holds around 100 hostages and the remains of more than 30 others.
Deception
(50%)
The article contains selective reporting as it only reports details that support the author's position of student protests against the Israel-Hamas war on college campuses. It does not provide any counterarguments or perspectives from those who may oppose these protests. Additionally, there is emotional manipulation through phrases such as 'more than 2,400 people have been arrested' and 'around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, have been killed'. These phrases are intended to evoke strong emotions in the reader.
At Princeton, in New Jersey, 18 students launched a hunger strike in an effort to push the university to divest from companies tied to Israel.
Why: The students are protesting the war’s death toll and are calling for universities to separate themselves from any companies that are advancing Israel’s military efforts in Gaza.
student protests over the Israel-Hamas war have popped up at many college campuses following the arrest of demonstrators in April at Columbia University.
Fallacies
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Bias
(95%)
The article reports on a protest at the University of Michigan during their graduation ceremony where students chanted anti-war messages and waved Palestinian flags. The author does not express any bias towards either side of the conflict but does provide information about the number of arrests made at other campuses and mentions that some students are participating in 'solidarity fasts'. However, there is a clear emphasis on the number of arrests made at various universities and encampments being dismantled. This could be seen as disproportionately focusing on one side of the issue, potentially implying that these protests are causing more harm than good.
At least 61 incidents where arrests were made at campus protests across the U.S.
Many encampments have been dismantled and protesters arrested in police crackdowns
Students at the University of Michigan's commencement ceremony demonstrated in solidarity with Gaza, waving Palestinian flags and chanting anti-war slogans.
University of Michigan students set up a Palestinian solidarity encampment on campus calling for the university to divest from companies with investments in Israel.
Accuracy
Israel has destroyed every university in Gaza and killed at least 5,479 students, 261 teachers, and 95 university professors according to the UN.
Israel launched an offensive in Gaza that has killed over 34,500 Palestinians, around two-thirds of whom were women and children.
Deception
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Fallacies
(80%)
The author uses inflammatory rhetoric by using the words 'scholasticide' and 'genocide' to describe Israel's actions. She also makes an appeal to emotion by describing the plight of Palestinians in a sympathetic way. The author also engages in a dichotomous depiction by portraying Israeli actions as solely destructive and Palestinian actions as peaceful protests.
“Israel bombs, UMich pays!”
“How many kids have you killed today?”
No universities left in Gaza.
“Divest from Israel now! Free Palestine!”
“Faculty and staff for liberation”
“Apartheid isn’t kosher! Jews demand divestment!”
Regent Hubbard, you can’t hide, you are funding genocide!
Bias
(0%)
The author demonstrates clear anti-Israel bias by repeatedly stating the number of Palestinians killed and displaced while minimizing the number of Israelis killed. The author also uses loaded language such as 'scholasticide' to describe Israel's actions.
At one point, several graduates appeared to stage a walkout from the ceremony while carrying Palestinian flags and wearing keffiyehs as onlooking students applauded.
How many kids have you killed today?
In response, Israeli forces have killed more than 34,000 Palestinians across Gaza while leaving 2 million survivors displaced across the narrow strip amid a famine caused by Israeli restrictions on aid.
Israel bombs, UMich pays!
Israel has also destroyed every university in Gaza, in addition to killing at least 5,479 students, 261 teachers and 95 university professors.
No universities left in Gaza.
Protesters at Michigan Stadium on Saturday. Photograph: Jacob Hamilton/Ann Arbor News/AP A plane bears a pro-Israel banner above Michigan Stadium on Saturday. Photograph: Jacob Hamilton/Ann Arbor News/AP
The UN, which has condemned Israel’s actions as ‘scholasticide’.
About 50 graduating students called for the University of Michigan to divest from companies with ties to Israel at the spring commencement ceremony on Saturday.
Israeli attacks on Gaza have destroyed every higher education campus since the conflict began, according to Palestinian news reports.
Reem Hassan, a Palestinian American business graduate, said her extended family in Jerusalem and the West Bank of Palestine have not been able to visit each other since the war started.
Accuracy
Hundreds of graduates wore keffiyehs or keffiyeh stoles as an act of solidarity with Palestinians.
Deception
(50%)
The article does not take a direct stance on the issue of divestment from Israel, but it does report on the protest and its impact on the commencement ceremony. It includes quotes from students supporting the protest and those who found it disruptive. The author also notes that university administrators have not publicly responded to student calls for divestment. This creates an impression of impartiality, but by including details about Palestinian casualties and statements from protesters, the article may inadvertently imply support for their cause.
The statement referred to Palestinian news reports that Israeli attacks on Gaza have destroyed every higher education campus since Israel first began its assault after an Oct. 7 attack by Hamas that killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians.
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains several instances of inflammatory rhetoric and appeals to emotion. The students' chants and the use of the term 'genocide' are emotionally charged language that can sway readers without providing any logical reasoning or evidence. Additionally, there is a dichotomous depiction of the protesters as heroes for peacefully protesting and those who disagree with them as disruptive or even supporting genocide.
“Disclose! Divest! We will not stop, we will not rest!”
“It is indeed these young men and women who will protect the freedoms that we so cherish as Americans in our Constitution of the United States, which includes the right to protest peacefully.”
“For America to support genocide, it’s a very sad thing to see. This is our country, we love our country. When our country participates in anything like that, it’s unacceptable.”
