Birmingham Uni under fire as students face disciplinary action for pro-Palestine protests

The University of Birmingham is under fire as two students face disciplinary action for their involvement in pro-Palestine protests.

The students, Mariyah and Antonia, also known as the “Birmingham 2”, were supposedly protesting against the university’s financial ties to companies allegedly complicit in genocide and human rights violations in Palestine.

A coalition of students, staff, alumni, and public supporters is calling for the disciplinary investigations to be dropped and for the university to protect students’ rights to protest.

Both Mariyah and Antonia have faced what campaigners claim was a “deeply prejudiced, management-driven disciplinary process” since May 2024.

The university has accused them of intimidation and participating in unauthorised protests, but activists say that these allegations are exaggerated, rooted in anti-Palestinian racism, and part of a broader effort to suppress pro-Palestine activism on campus.

The protest in question was staged outside a university subcommittee meeting to demand divestment from over £76 million in investments and partnerships with companies allegedly tied to the genocide of Palestinian people.

Students wore white T-shirts marked with red paint and chanted slogans such as “not in our name.” The university later claimed that protesters were intimidating staff, describing keffiyehs—a symbolic Palestinian solidarity piece of attire—as “threatening”.

Student activists told The Birmingham Tab that there has been a pattern of “alleged islamophobia and racial prejudice, including the removal of Palestinian flags from campus, as well as the harassment of students wearing Palestine badges.”

They also argued such actions demonstrate “systemic repression of pro-Palestinian activism under the guise of maintaining campus safety.”

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Students further told The Birmingham Tab that a member of staff at the University of Birmingham allegedly harassed student protesters, later mischaracterising them as “would-be radicalisers” who would need to be reintegrated into “normal life at UoB” once the camp ended.

They claimed this is an example of the deeply islamophobic narratives relied on by the university to fabricate unfounded claims of intimidation and harassment and to label legitimate protest as “unacceptable behaviour”.

One student has been awaiting the outcome of their disciplinary hearing for almost seven months, while the second has only recently received a hearing date, months after allegations have been made against her in October 2024. Activists say the prolonged process has caused significant stress and harm to the students’ well-being, reflecting a punitive approach to silencing dissent.

One of the Birmingham 2 is facing additional allegations for “alleged participation in [an] unauthorised protest” during Welcome Week. The students had set up a meet and greet event and a picnic to reach out to new students, and in both instances they have been met by “brutal repression.”

Students protestors claim that security have been instructed by university management to “forcefully rip away” flags and tents and to remove the protesters from campus.

Whilst security couldn’t fully destroy the camp, protestors claimed that they subjected them to “violent harassment, causing bruises, cuts, and other minor injuries.”

The Birmingham 2 also alleged to have been individually targeted by the university management in their wider campaign of “demonising student protesters and criminalising dissent on campus”.

Numerous public figures have publicly expressed their support for the Birmingham 2. Notable supporters include former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, acclaimed musician Brian Eno, and human rights campaigner Leanne Mohammed.

Each has been seen holding signs that state, “I support the UoB 2,” accompanied by the hashtags “Defend the right to protest.”

A University of Birmingham spokesperson told the Birmingham Tab: “The University of Birmingham has a very strong and longstanding commitment to freedom of speech and academic freedom – supported by our longstanding Code of Practice. However, we are unable to comment on active case matters involving individual students.

“The safety of all our students and staff is of paramount importance and we are committed to providing a safe, welcoming, and inclusive environment for all.”

Featured images via @bhamliberatedzone on Instagram