Milwaukee: Down with political repression and with UWM PD; Hands off the student movement!

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement by Students for a Democratic Society University of Wisconsin Milwaukee Chapter.

The Students for a Democratic Society UWM chapter condemns the ongoing political repression against Robby Knapp, Patricia Fish, Kayla Paterson, and Audari Tamayo. Knapp is currently facing suspension after refusing to stop protesting for Palestine and has been hit with multiple disciplinary sanctions. Fish is now being hit with disciplinary sanctions from the Chapman Hall occupation in February. Patterson and Tamayo were unable to enroll in time for the Fall 2024 semester after bogus holds were placed on their school accounts. This was just part of the string of repression unleashed by the university in its attempt to intimidate members of SDS and the student movement at large for standing with Palestine.

At 2:00 a.m., June 20, UWM PD officers went to Robby Knapp’s home. They arrested Knapp at 2:25 a.m., took the long way to campus, and didn’t read his Miranda rights until after arriving at the campus booking station at 3:00 a.m. They later released Knapp at 3:26 a.m., with no way to get home. This despicable act of intimidation was to force the SDSer to give the police information about an alleged “graffiti” incident on campus.

Later that week, the police visited the homes of Tamayo and Patterson, visiting Tamayo’s home twice. Both SDSers live over 20 minutes away from campus, making the repeated visits by campus police even more ridiculous. Neither SDSer spoke to the cops. The UWM police later called them both repeatedly, attempting to intimidate Patterson and Tamayo into going in for a “chat” and giving them information on their dubious investigations into other SDS members. In defiance, all three SDSers – Knapp, Patterson, and Tamayo – refused to say a word to the cops.

SDS has been relentless in standing up for what is right. The struggle has risen to levels unseen in decades, and with it, the ruling class and the administrators at their service have attempted to stomp out the growth of the student movement. We know police weren’t acting on their own — they act on behalf of the administration. It was admin who wanted to crack down on the encampment. It was admin who called over 10 police precincts during the Chapman Hall occupation in February, and it was the admin that had riot police and pre-printed citations ready for student activists during the Board of Regents meeting in June. The administration is not our friend, they are tools of the war machine.

We denounce these political attacks from the administration and the UWM PD. SDS will never talk to the cops in their bogus investigations against fellow organizers, much less members of SDS. UW-Milwaukee is spending student and taxpayer money on sham investigations, sending cops far off campus to intimidate pro-Palestine student activists over some alleged graffiti. It’s a shame. This is one of many reasons we demand that admin defund the cops and instead fund student needs!

Along with attacks against SDSers, SDS UWM has been suspended from being a registered student organization for over a year. All this is clear-cut political repression directed at pro-Palestine activists and organizations. Nonetheless, targeting SDS has backfired on admin. SDS has continued to deal blows against the enemy. In addition to advancing our campaign to cut ties with “Israel”, we have gotten cases dismissed at court, overturned an unfounded suspension alongside our coalition members in the Popular University for Palestine, and we’ve had student conduct charges brought down to simple “reflection essays”. SDS has grown and helped build the movement on this campus and in Milwaukee through struggle, not compromise. Admin will keep failing because with every act of repression, our resolve to win only grows.

SDS demands UW-Milwaukee drop the student conduct charges and investigations against Robby Knapp and Patricia Fish! SDS demands UWM PD stay the hell away from SDSers’ homes! SDS says solidarity with Palestine is not a crime! SDS says don’t talk to the cops, chop from the top! Dare to struggle, dare to win!

#MilwaukeeWI #WI #StudentMovement #PoliticalRepression #FreeSpeech #SDS