The UC Board of Regents and its standing committees are meeting at the Luskin Conference Center from March 18 to 20. The UC Divest Coalition and Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) are holding a joint action outside the meeting to demand UC divestment from assets tied to the Israeli military and to protest Israel breaking the Gaza ceasefire. Israel launched a new wave of strikes across Gaza early Tuesday morning, killing at least 404 people.
This protest also joins the PYM’s global “Mask off Maersk” Day of Action targeting the Danish shipping and logistics company that has come under intense scrutiny by pro-Palestine activists. At Maersk’s annual shareholder meeting today, the company is voting on ending the shipping of military equipment to Israel. According to a white paper published last week by Graduate Students for Justice in Palestine (GSJP) and UCLA Rank & File for a Democratic Union (R&F), the UC invests nearly $20 million in Maersk and has a total of $18.8 billion in assets targeted for divestment.
This post, updated by members of our News Department, seeks to provide up-to-date information and developments about the demonstration and will be periodically updated. The News Department will also maintain immediate, real-time updates on X (formerly Twitter):
Live Feed:
4:11pm — Protest draws to a close
Speakers urge students to return to the Luskin Conference Center tomorrow at 10:30 a.m. as protesters resume pickets outside the Regents meeting. The question “Who’s coming back tomorrow?” is met with cheers as students start to disperse. A teach-in led by Samahang Pilipino and Anakbayan at UCLA is set to begin soon.
4:05pm — Students continue to share updates from negotiations
A representative from UC Divest affirms that they will not accept a meeting with the Regents unless it is public and with “all the Regents who line their pockets with blood money.”
3:40pm — Students reaffirm demands for a meeting with the Regents [Updated 3:56pm]
Chanting “Meet with us!,” a speaker tells the crowd that a representative from UC Divest is currently in conversation with the UC Regents to demand that they come outside. Students gather to share what they discussed in the UC Regents teach-in.
A representative from UC Divest shares updates from their negotiations to the crowd as they demand a public meeting with the Regents. According to the representative, administration has offered to hold a discussion with a small group of protesters on the condition that they identify themselves
3:10pm — Students gather for a teach-in on the UC Regents
The teach-in/town hall, led by the UC Divest Coalition at UCLA and titled “Who are the UC Regents?” is taking place outside James West Alumni Center. Demonstrators fly the Palestinian flag as students sit in the grass.
The teach-in has since moved closer to the Luskin Conference Center, as organizers spread the protesters out into discussion groups.
2:27pm — Protesters reiterate commitment to abolition and take a break
After a speaker reiterates the UC Divest Coalition’s demands for police abolition on the UCLA campus, protesters move back from the Luskin entrance and begin a brief break. As the demonstrators walk back, they chant “Oink, oink, piggy, piggy, we’re gonna make your life sh*tty.”
2:18pm — Demonstrators face riot police
Protesters have moved from a picket formation to face UCPD officers at the southeast corner of the Luskin Conference Center. They shout, “UCPD, KKK, IOF, you’re all the same.” Demonstrators boo as speakers discuss UCPD’s response to organizing on campus, specifically referring to the April 30 attack on the Royce encampment by pro-Israel agitators and the subsequent police sweep. A car draped in Palestinian flags and towing a large watermelon sculpture drives by the protesters as they chant “No justice, no peace, no fascist police.”
1:55pm — Demonstrators start to picket outside the Luskin Conference Center
Protesters march in a circle as UCPD officers watch from the side. Students chant “UC Regents, come outside, we will not be pushed aside,” and “UC Regents, what do you say: how many kids have you killed today?”
1:45pm — Students march back to the Luskin Turnaround, riot police arrive
Departing the Regents public session entrance, students and community members return to the Luskin Turnaround. Speakers lead the crowd in chants, shouting “Disclose, divest, we will not stop, we will not rest,” and “UCPD. KKK, IOF: they’re all the same.”
Students are gathering outside the east entrance of the Luskin Conference Center. The entrance is blocked by security staff, while 4 UCPD officers remain stationed outside the turnaround. 8 officers arrive in riot gear and face the students, equipped with face shields, batons, projectile weapons, and zip ties.
1:40pm — Speakers share experiences from Regents open session
Students who went to the UC Regents’ Investments committee open session condemn the Regents for not meeting their demands to “come outside” and negotiate with student protesters. They note that the UC has the capacity to divest from the war industry in one day, and still have the same total asset value that they had two years ago. They state that the Regents have “thought about [divestment], they thought about it enough to put these fences up,” referring to temporary barricades erected around the Luskin. “We’re not going anywhere until they meet us.”
1:20pm — Speakers address crowd
The next speaker describes “homes, mosques, schools, shelters destroyed” — met with cries of “shame” from the crowd — “This is what the UC Regents have decided is normal.” “The US and Israel are carrying out a shock and awe campaign on all fronts… to break our resolve and shock us into inaction. Are we going to let that happen?” The crowd shouts “No!”
Another speaker, from PYM, highlights the “Mask off Maersk” campaign and the UC’s $20M in investments in Maersk. Today, Maersk rejected resolutions at its annual shareholders meeting to end shipments of military equipment to Israel. “We will not stop and we will continue to organize until they stop sending military cargo to Israel. […] The decision is theirs and the world is watching.” They lead the chant: “Sanctions. Embargo. No more shipping Israeli cargo.”
The next speaker, from the Roofers Local Union 36, highlights connections between global labor movements and pro-Palestinian protesters. After demanding the release of Mahmoud Khalil, he states that “Trump’s MAGA fascism” demands a united front and a new workers’ party independent of the Democrats.
John Parker, coordinator at the Harriet Tubman Center for Social Justice, says that “anyone who collaborated with genocide is guilty.” He states that “we cannot tolerate” bipartisan crackdowns on pro-Palestinian speech. He draws parallels between the Black Panther Party and the newly formed Community Self-Defense Coalition, a group aiming to defend migrants in LA from ICE. He urges protesters to join the group and “shut down LA City Council.”
1:07pm — March stops between Luskin and Pauley Pavilion
The protesters have stopped between Luskin and Pauley Pavilion, chanting, “UC, UC pick a side, divest from genocide.” A speaker says that “the occupation and genocide continues” as the Regents meet, with students attaching banners to fencing that was set up around the Luskin. Another speaker discusses the deaths from last night’s airstrikes across Gaza by Israel.
1:00pm — First open session of Investment committee starts, Rally begins
The first open session of the Investment committee has begun. The speaker from UC Divest leads chants as a rally begins: “Free the people, free the land, no peace on stolen land!” Drums and trumpets play along.
Marching out of Luskin Turnaround and towards Bruin Plaza, protesters chant, “UC, UC, you can’t hide! You’re supporting genocide.”
12:55pm — Press conference draws to a close
As the press conference draws to an end, the UC Divest speaker thanks coalition members for speaking. They now move into a final section, with further details on their demands: “We have one specific ask of the UC Regents during their three days of meetings: come outside! UC Regents have time to come down here and answer our questions – and we have plenty of them. UC Regents, come outside and answer them for yourselves.”
12:43pm — Final speaker from UCLA R&F
With the crowd at approximately 150 people, the press conference’s final speaker is from UCLA R&F: “The UC is an integral part of California’s military-industrial complex. The UC has contributed to the massive rent increases for working people and the poor. […] The UC Regents are the mouthpiece for the Democrats and corporate California.” They also denounce the private security on campus for racial profiling of students and workers.
“The UC’s leadership is directly responsible for the […] Zionist, fascist mob that left 25 students hospitalized. If you don’t like the Regents’ version of democracy, they’ll beat it into you with a police baton.”
“Just as Columbia is working with Trump, the UC will do the same… they have already built up the McCarthyite infrastructure that will be utilized by the far right. There will be mass struggles… our unions must be ready to mobilize mass protests of students and workers and prepare strike action” [if ICE comes onto our campus.]
12:28pm — Two speakers from SJP
The next speakers are two members of SJP: “Entire bloodlines are being wiped out, right now, as we speak. All eyes should be on Palestine. People collecting their loved ones, are collecting their hands, collecting their legs… my heart bleeds for every Palestinian child… my heart is in Gaza. Every camera that is pointing at us right now should also be pointing at Gaza.”
They condemn Steve Lurie, the new Associate Vice Chancellor for Campus and Community Safety, who said on record that UCPD would collaborate with ICE: “The same Steve Lurie that spent 17 years at LAPD… Steve Lurie is an enemy of the people.”
“Like the steadfast people of Gaza, of Palestine, we will not be intimidated into silence. They will not separate us from Palestine.” UC Divest leads chants “Palestine is not for sale, we won’t give up, we will not fail.”
12:28pm — Next speaker from JVP at UCLA
The crowd has now grown to approximately 100 people. The next speaker from JVP at UCLA says, “We are here to show that the Palestinian solidarity movement is still strong.” Discussing Israel breaking the ceasefire, they say. “The genocide is funded by the US and supported by the University of California.”
Decrying the detainment of Mahmoud Khalil by ICE, they state: “As a Jew… I can tell you that the accusations of antisemitism at UCLA are false. I believe Trump will come to UCLA soon… We must all stand up to resist fascism.”
12:10pm — GSJP speaker affirms the 4 UC Divest demands
The speaker from GSJP affirms the 4 UC Divest demands, with each demand met with cheers from the crowd: 1) Divestment from assets tied to Israeli military, 2) Publicly disclose all UC assets, 3) Boycott all academic ties to Israel, 4) Abolish all policing on campus.
Referencing the $12.3M in police response to the Royce Quad Palestine Solidarity Encampment, as detailed in the white paper, the speaker condemns the UC Regents who “actively work to silence dissent against genocide,” saying, “This report shows that divestment is not just a moral imperative but an actionable demand.”
They end their speech with, “We will not rest until we see a free Palestine in our lifetimes.”
12:18pm — Protester, not affiliated with speakers, shakes barricades
One protester, not affiliated with the speakers, shakes the barricades and shouts “There’s more of us than there are them, wake up, fight back! Block them from coming in!” — referring to the UC Regents.
12:10pm — UC Divest Coalition press conference begins
UC Divest’s press conference begins by discussig the white paper published by GSJP and R&F at UCLA, an in-depth report discussing $18.8 billion in UC assets targeted for divestment.
The first speaker, from GSJP, delivers a press release, then says, “UCLA should be standing up for its community. Instead, Julio Frenk has prioritized the creation of a new task force combating anti-Israeli bias. […] The UC is nothing short of a global carnage.”
Discussing links between the Apollo funds that the UC invests in and Blackwater, they state: “Several major arms dealers can trace back their companies to early investments by the UC.”
12:07pm — UC Regents enter Luskin Conference Center
Protesters begin chanting “Free, free Palestine” to the beat of drums as UC Divest representatives prepare to start press conference, unfurling a banner that reads, “Stop Israel’s genocide in Gaza.” Protestors scream, “Shame!” as UC Regents enter the conference center, including their Chief Investment Officer. Security quickly ushers them into the building.
11:56am — “Stop the Nazification of our university.”
Demonstrators hold a banner that reads: “UC Regents: no collaboration with Trump MAGA fascism, stop the Nazification of our university.” The crowd has grown to approximately 75 people, including 4 legal observers.
11:51am — UC Divest Town Hall begins
With the crowd reaching around 50 people, UC Divest confirms that their press conference will begin. In the meantime, organizers hand out signs that read, “The movement continues until Palestine is free,” and “Release Mahmoud Khalil.” Students distribute copies of “The New York War Crimes,” a newspaper published by Writers Against the War on Gaza (WAWOG).
11:35am — Protesters gather outside Luskin Turnaround
About 30 students and community members are gathering outside the Luskin Turnaround in anticipation of the UC Regents meeting to begin today. As protesters prepare for a UC Divest Coalition press conference, they hold the Palestinian flag and banners that read “The Nakba Never Ended” and “By Soul, By Blood,” playing Palestinian music. Students and community members continue to arrive at the scene, while UCPD officers control access to the Luskin Turnaround.
The entrance to the Luskin Conference Center, where the Regents meeting’s first open session will begin today at 1 p.m., is currently blocked by metal barricades and Luskin Hotel staff.
Contributing reports by: Imani Brutlag, Ellis Wren
Read our full coverage of the March 2025 UC Regents meeting here.
