Outside Royce Hall, students and others stood in line to check in before entering the encampment.

Participants said they had seen minimal police presence — mostly officers passing by in squad cars.

Marie Salem, 28, a graduate student studying public health, said the encampment is a community of people demanding a change from UC administrators.

“It’s about our community realizing that we no longer can go to a university that is complicit in genocide, and we no longer can go to a university that is invested in this genocide of the Gazans,” Salem said.

George Dutton, a professor of Asian language and cultures, said he and others wanted to observe the protest to ensure that students can safely practice their 1st Amendment rights.

Dutton said it was “deeply disturbing” to see a large police presence on campuses across America this past week as students protest the war in Gaza.

At UC Santa Barbara, hundreds occupied the student resources building Thursday for a daylong series of workshops, art projects and other actions to express solidarity with Palestinians, call for a cease-fire and demand an end to Israel-related investments.

A few tents were set up inside the building, but no encampment is planned, said Bisnupriya Ghosh, a professor of English and global studies and member of Academics for Justice in Palestine. She added that no police were present, and the event was proceeding peacefully.

“It’s centered around education about Israel-Palestine, as well as antisemitism, Islamophobia and other forms of racism and hate,” Ghosh said.

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(Times staff writers Melissa Gomez, Jenny Jarvie and Teresa Watanabe contributed to this report.)

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