Of all the civil unrest on U.S. college campuses that happened this spring in response to the Israel-Hamas hostilities in the Middle East, besides the Columbia protests, the demonstrations at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) have probably received the most attention.
Although UCLA’s demonstrations and encampment of about 30 tents were mostly peaceful at the start, that changed on April 30 and May 1 when a group of counter-protestors arrived on campus, throwing objects, and launching fireworks at the camp and the pro-Palestine protestors who were inside. Some of the counter-protestors attempted to get inside the encampment, and the pro-Palestine protestors used pepper spray to defend themselves. There were many fights and altercations.
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Police eventually moved into the fracas, including the LAPD, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, and California Highway Patrol. About 25 protesters were taken to the hospital. More than 200 people were arrested, most of whom were pro-Palestinian protesters.
It also should be noted that some Jewish students say that before the clash, they were excluded from portions of UCLA’s campus by pro-Palestinian protesters because they refused to denounce their faith. Others say they experienced various incidents of antisemitism, including verbal and physical assaults.
UCLA PD Spent Nearly $400K in Officer Overtime
So how much has all this cost UCLA? It’s difficult to determine, but The Independent is reporting UCLA PD and the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) spent more than $630,000 in officer overtime breaking up the protests and encampments. Specifically, UCLA PD spent $389,389 on overtime, while LAPD spent about $243,444. Those amounts are in addition to the $10 million the university paid for safety and security during the demonstrations.
Additionally, those amounts don’t include the costs associated with creating UCLA’s new Office of Campus Safety, campus cleanup and repairs of the damages caused by the protesters and counter-protesters, the legal expenses resulting from lawsuits that have been filed or will soon be filed, and the bad PR.
