IU’s commencement ceremonies will still go ahead as scheduled, according to an IU email sent to graduating seniors and their families Tuesday afternoon. The graduate commencement ceremony is on May 3 in Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, and the undergraduate ceremony is May 4 at Memorial Stadium. The email added there would be a “designated protest area” outside each ceremony.
“IU respects the free sharing of ideas and viewpoints, and it is our duty to uphold the right to peaceful protest under the First Amendment,” the email read.
The Palestine Solidarity Committee, a pro-Palestine student organization involved with the encampment in Dunn Meadow, called on the IU community for an indefinite walkout from classes Monday during the final week of the spring semester in a Sunday Instagram post.
The encampment is largely composed of students, and associated protests since Thursday have featured several faculty members as well as students.
Some classes and finals this week have been canceled due to the protests. Additionally, some professors have offered to extend deadlines through the end of the semester.
The designated protest area will be located outside Assembly Hall and Memorial Stadium. Protesters will not be allowed inside the venue, and venue staffers will be present to respond to “disruptions,” according to the email.
The email also added that guests will be required to walk through a metal detector, and only clear bags about the size of a gallon and small clutch bags will be permitted inside the event.
CLARIFICATION: This story has been updated to clarify that there are two commencement ceremonies, one for graduate students on Friday and the other for undergraduate students on Saturday.
