Watan-A video clip captured the moment of the American police’s arrest of presidential candidate Jill Stein during protests supporting Palestinians at Washington University in St. Louis.
A spokesperson for Stein’s campaign told CNN that the Green Party presidential candidate, Jill Stein, was detained during a demonstration in support of Palestinians at Washington University.
The spokesperson added in their statement: “We are not aware of any charges at this time.”
Stein had participated in the protest to support students who had set up a camp, announcing they wouldn’t leave until Washington University severed its ties with Boeing and boycotted Israeli academic institutions, among other demands.
BREAKING: Jill Stein and her Campaign Manager and Deputy Campaign Manager, Jason Call and Kelly Merrill-Cayer, have been arrested at Washington University in St. Louis while supporting a protest against WashU’s ties to the war on Gaza.
Video from @KallieECox pic.twitter.com/rkUYC9b5Qx— Dr. Jill Stein🌻 (@DrJillStein) April 28, 2024
A message to Palestinians
The Green Party candidate said in a recorded video before her arrest that she supports students and their constitutional rights to freedom of expression.
She added, “We will stand here in solidarity with students defending democracy and human rights, standing to end genocide.”
David Schwab, communications director for Jill Stein’s presidential campaign, stated that the candidate tried to calm the situation between protesters and the police, but law enforcement was unresponsive, leading to arrests shortly after.
Potential presidential candidate
Jill Stein (74 years old) announced in November 2023 that she would seek the Green Party nomination in the 2024 presidential election, having previously run for president in 2012 and 2016.
During her announcement, she said she wanted to offer voters an alternative outside the failed two-party system and extensively discussed issues related to climate change, policing, education, economy, foreign policy, healthcare, immigration, and abortion.
Jill sent this video shortly before the police started arresting students and supporters at Washington University: pic.twitter.com/A1nUfDRUs9
— Dr. Jill Stein🌻 (@DrJillStein) April 28, 2024
University uprising
On April 18th of this year, students opposed to the Israeli war on Gaza began a sit-in at Columbia University’s campus in New York.
The protesters demand that the university administration cease its academic cooperation with Israeli universities and withdraw its investments in companies supporting the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.
With police intervention and the arrest of dozens of students, anger spread, leading protests to dozens of universities across the United States, including leading institutions like Harvard, George Washington, New York, Yale, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and North Carolina.