News Photo by Steve Schulwitz Alpena Community College instructor Tim Kuehnlein, left, and Jay Walterreit, Director of Public Information & Marketing, look at historical documents that hang on the college’s Freedom Shrine on Thursday.

ALPENA — As protests and violence on university campuses around the country spread, there appears to be no immediate intentions of the student body at the Alpena Community College to gather in protest of Israel and its war with Hamas.

Don MacMaster, ACC president, said so far, the issue of Israel, Hamas, and the federal government’s lack of action to avoid more deaths in the Middle East doesn’t seem to be high on the priority list of a majority of the students.

He said he is unaware of any plans for a protest in Alpena, but, MacMaster said, ACC fully supports the student’s rights of free speech and peaceful assembly.

MacMaster said right now, he doesn’t expect any type of protest, especially one that turns violent.

“We have a policy that advocates free speech, but I just don’t see a protest happening,” MacMaster said. “I don’t see Israel, Palestinian, Hamas being a hot topic on campus like it is at the large universities.”

Thousands of students, university staff, and public members have taken over the grounds of many universities and have turned violent, including UCLA, Columbia University, University of Arizona, and more.

So far, hundreds of arrests have been made by police who have been ordered to remove the protesters who demand the colleges do more to encourage the government to help end the bombardment of the Palestinians and divest from companies who support Israel. The pro-Palistinian protesters have gone as far as blocking Jewish students from entering some campuses to attend class.

Many students and staff were ordered to do schooling via online learning while the protests were ongoing.

MacMaster said he is aware of what is transpiring on college campuses, including in Ann Arbor where there is a large protest at the University of Michigan, but he said ACC students seemed focused on other issues that they believe resonate more closely with their beliefs and concerns, such as it being Sexual Assault Awareness Month last month.

MacMaster said students shared their views, opinions, and concerns by creating signs and posters to hang in the hallways of the ACC campus to inform others about the harm of sexual assault. He said he supported the student’s free speech, encouraged it, and even participated in it.

“They are taped up all over the campus and you can tell that is an issue our student body cares about,” he said. “They express their opinions and utilize their right to free speech without a protest. That is their form of free speech they choose, and I admire that.”

When asked how many Jewish students are enrolled at ACC or how many students are of Middle Eastern descent, MacMaster said he was sure there were some, but wasn’t sure how many. He said the staff hasn’t received any reports of bullying or threats of violence against any students.

“I can’t recall any time during my time at the college that we have had any complaints about bullying or threats for any religious affiliation,” MacMaster said. “It hasn’t been an issue at all.”

Tim Kuehnlein, professor in the history department at ACC, said the freedom of speech is one of the most critical fabrics of the freedoms citizens of the United States have. He said the ability to share thoughts, beliefs, and concerns, and protest peacefully when needed, should never be taken for granted and protected at all cost. However, Kuehnlein said people need to be mindful of how they express their opinions.

“Freedom is a precious thing and we need to respect one another in diversity and diverse opinions,” he said. “We need to be responsible in our behavior when expressing the freedom of speech and expression, and, sometimes, we need to be reminded of these important principles: freedom, respect, and responsibility.”