IOWA CITY, Iowa — University of Iowa police arrested nine people after they chained themselves to the doors of Kinnick Stadium Saturday, according to court documents.
Criminal complaints filed against the protesters indicate they used "abusive words toward University of Iowa dignitaries" and caused more than $300 in damages to the stadium doors.
While police did not indicate the cause of the protest, one of the protesters told Local 5 in a statement they were protesting the university's alleged involvement with weapons contractors supporting Israel.
"There had been previous attempts by several organizations and groups to schedule meetings with President Barbara Wilson; there have been emails sent with explicit demands to divest from Collins Aerospace Systems and Lockheed Martin," said protester Clara Reynen in a statement. "All said attempts at communication have been dismissed and ignored by the UIowa administration."
Reynen continued to state that the way police officers responded to nonviolent protesters was "terrifying."
"As someone who has a previous PTSD diagnosis, I consider myself to be very lucky to have access to family, friends, and a therapist to help me process all of this," Reynen said. "What we cannot forget is that Palestinians have never had a chance to process. They have never had a chance to deal with the trauma that they have sustained through years of systematic oppression and apartheid."
Despite feeling "uncharacteristically somber" going into the Christmas season, Reynen reaffirmed her commitment to standing with Palestinians.
"I stand in solidarity, as a Christian, with my Muslim and Jewish brothers and sisters who are calling for a ceasefire," they told Local 5.
Another protester who was arrested, Jenny Kula, said she chained herself to the doors of Kinnick Stadium because President Wilson was hosting a holiday event there.
In a statement to Local 5, Kula continued: "I did so because she is complicit in the genocide of Palestinians through the university’s collaboration with Skunkwork (Lockheed Martin) and Raytheon (Collins Aerospace). I am desperate to end this complicity to the extermination of Palestine and Palestinians. I was peaceful but the cops brutalized me. A cop cut open my wrist and pressed my nose bone into my face during arrest when I did not resist. I want ceasefire and an end to the senseless killing of so many Palestinian children."
Local 5 reached out to the University of Iowa Police Department for comment on the arrests. In a statement, spokesperson Hayley Bruce said the department has not received any formal complaints from those involved in the protests as of Tuesday afternoon.
"The ultimate objective of every law enforcement encounter is to support the safety of the community and avoid or minimize injury," Bruce said in part. ". . . The community is permitted to exercise their first amendment rights in outdoor areas of campus as long as it complies with reasonable time, place, and manner restrictions, and as long as the conduct is lawful, and does not impede access to a facility or use of walkways, interfere with vehicle traffic, or disrupt the functioning of the institution."
By bolting the doors closed and chaining themselves to Kinnick, Bruce said the protesters blocked access to the building and thus impeded emergency and fire egress.
"This posed a safety issue and caused damage to the building, and law enforcement intervened to maintain campus safety after the protestors declined multiple opportunities to move on their own," Bruce said in her statement.