Friday update on Library Mall encampment

UW-Madison is providing the following updates on Friday, May 3.

Since yesterday morning, campus leaders and protest organizers have held three meetings to understand protest organizers’ concerns and expectations and to lay the foundation to resolve the tent encampment on Library Mall.

During the most recent meeting, which took place Friday morning and did not include Chancellor Mnookin, campus leaders discussed their desire to identify a solution before the beginning of finals on Sunday and their interest in an additional meeting on Saturday to engage in further discussion.

5 p.m.

Invitation to Saturday meeting: The following message was sent to student protest organizers on Friday afternoon.

We continue to be grateful to be in dialogue with you.

We remain willing to meet Saturday at noon for continued dialogue, as we proposed this morning. We believe that today’s meeting ended productively, and that it makes sense for us to continue engaging with each other. As we look around the country at how events have unfolded at universities in Los Angeles and New York, we certainly hope that we can find a better path forward here in Madison. We hope and trust you want the same and will join us tomorrow at noon.

At this point, we have not made any commitments in relation to your concerns or demands, and you have not made any concessions.

Please let us know by 9 a.m. Saturday if you are willing to meet at noon.

John Zumbrunnen
Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs

Lori Reesor
Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs

Charles Isbell
Provost

4 p.m. University Committee statement

The University Committee of the Faculty Senate released the following statement on Friday, May 3, 2024

The members of the University Committee, the Executive Committee of the Faculty Senate at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, urge the student leaders representing those protesting on Library Mall and members of the administration to continue their discussions through the weekend. We fully acknowledge the complexity of the issues in Israel and Gaza, which is at the heart of the demonstrations, and the suffering that the violence there has caused. Still, we believe that the best resolution to intractable circumstances is not violence or intransigence but deliberation in good faith. The parties must continue their discussions with the aim of peacefully coming to a speedy resolution acceptable to all those involved, as difficult as that might be.

Michael Bernard-Donals
Annie Jones
Li Chiao-Ping
Fernando Tejedo-Herrero
Susan Thibeault, chair
Ellen Zweibel