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For the first time in the school’s history, pro-Palestinian activists were removed from the University of Michigan’s student government over failing to do their job.
Student president Alifa Anam Chowdhury and Vice President Elias Atkinson, both pro-Gaza activists, were found guilty of dereliction of duty based on Chowdhury’s four unexcused absences from assembly meetings and Atkinson’s failure to hold the required twice-monthly meetings.
This was after a seven-day student judicial hearing, which lasted over 20 hours.
The activists were found not guilty of other allegations, with Chowdhury being accused of incitement to violence and cyber access, violations, and defamation and Atkinson also being accused of incitement to violence.
The trial follows Chowdhury’s presidential campaign in April under her “Shut It Down” platform. She promised to withhold funding from student organisations unless Michigan’s Board of Regents agreed to divest its endowment from Israel.
As the university was reluctant to divest, Chowdhury blocked over $1.3 million in funds for student activities for 400 campus groups after being elected.
This led to the student assembly voting to overrule the budget freeze in October, a meeting attended by many protesters. The same meeting also voted down a resolution to redirect some student funds to a university in Gaza.
The former president also allegedly changed the password to the student government account and posted a message about her frustration with the vote’s outcome.
The following month, Chowdhury and Atkinson were impeached for “inciting violence” against student representatives who opposed the Gaza aid measure and calling critics “Zionists” on the student government’s social media account.
Chowdhury was also impeached for “failing to fulfil the duties of her office”.
The motion says Chowdhury “gravely endangered the security of students and the functioning of the Central Student Government”.
The judges said they had “no choice but to do as the constitution commands and as the evidence compels”.
Chowdhury will be replaced by the former speaker of the Assembly, who will have to nominate a new vice president, who will be approved by the Assembly. An internal election will then be held.
After 7 October last year, the University of Michigan saw intense pro-Palestinian activism with protests and an encampment calling for an end to Israel’s war on Gaza, which has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians.
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