Encampments continue at Bay Area universities; graduations not expected to be impacted

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- The tents are still up at university encampments around the Bay Area.

From San Francisco State over to UC Berkeley, and Stanford up to Sonoma State.

Students steadfast in their protest of the Israel-Hamas war and calling on their schools to act.

"This right now, is a moment in history, truly I believe," said Sonoma State protester, Albert Levine.

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At Sonoma State University, the encampment is now entering its second week.

Students there making demands similar to other universities, including things like having their school divest from companies that do business with Israel.

"Right now, we're just listening. We want to hear clearly what they are and then think through how we can be responsive as a campus to that," said Gerald Jones, the Vice President of Student Affairs at the university.

In contrast to scenes at other universities around the nation, encampments here in the Bay Area have remained largely peaceful.

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At UC Berkeley, protesters tell us they believe most of the encampments around the country have been largely the same.

They think it's the varying responses by universities that have caused the different outcomes.

"The university has this kind of idea that they uphold free speech values. The university is known for its free speech values quote, unquote," said Hamza Mahmoud, a protester at UC Berkeley.

Earlier in the week, representatives from the American Civil Liberties Union visited the protest area at Berkeley.

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The organization saying they wanted to inform the students what rights they have while protesting, and what would be illegal.

"The First Amendment and California Constitution's protections for free speech are incredibly powerful. But they are not absolute," said the ACLU's Chessie Thacher.

With things remaining relatively quiet, both Sonoma State and UC Berkeley say they plan on having graduation ceremonies as normal.

Even though they tell us they are prepared for all scenarios.

"UC Berkeley has long experience with protests at graduation ceremonies over the years. There's always some sort of protest. So we are prepared for this year. We know there's a good chance that will happen," said university spokesperson, Dan Mogulof.

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