The Graduate Student Council (GSC) passed a bill calling for the University to disclose the details of its response following an April 22 incident in which an Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) soldier visiting campus tackled a student and allegedly placed him in a chokehold after he stole a sign from a tabling event.
The Joint Resolution Calling For Accountability, Transparency, And Student Protection Following The April 22 Assault At White Plaza demands that the University explain why no AlertSU was issued following the incident and why the Stanford University Department of Public Safety (SUDPS) characterized the event as an “altercation” rather than an “assault.”
Last Monday, the GSC tied in a vote on an earlier version of the resolution. During its Wednesday meeting, the UGS voted to pass an updated version of the resolution that does not mention the Stanford Israel Association (SIA) by name. During the meeting, some members of the SIA raised concerns that the organization was unfairly targeted by the resolution given the limited jurisdiction of the ASSU to investigate VSOs.
“The Undergraduate Senate made a mistake last week in passing the original resolution, because it passed judgment and also punitively encouraged punishment for a VSO,” said former UGS chair David Sengthay ’26. “I think we should make this viewpoint neutral, where no party is being blamed on the student side. It’s not wise for the ASSU to pass that judgment.”
Some GSC members raised concerns that even with the alterations to the bill, its language was politicized and placed too much importance on the April 22 incident.
“The way it’s written right now is revolving around this one incident that I regard as an unfortunate accident and kind of a one-off thing, and trying to make a big deal out of it,” said GSC Treasurer Aristotle Economon M.B.A. ’27. “I think we shouldn’t, as a student government, be writing these slanted bills.”
GSC councilmember Joshua Bishop J.D. ’28 raised concerns about a clause that referenced an Instagram post published by the Stanford Students Palestinian Association (SSPA) that suggested Palestinian students might be “watched, identified, or surveilled by participants in such tabling events.”
“It seems like a strong thing to be coming from just an Instagram post by an anonymous student,” Bishop said. In response to Bishop’s comments, Sengthay struck the clause from the bill.
The amended bill passed 7-3 in the GSC, and will next move to the Faculty Senate for a vote.
Additionally, UGS Deputy Chair Nason Li ’29 introduced the Joint Bill To Recommend Nominees For University Committees for the 2026-27 academic year. If passed, the bill will affirm the UGS and GSC’s support for the Nominations Commission’s recommendations to committees, including the Committee on Research, the Committee on Undergraduate Admissions & Financial Aid, the Committee on Undergraduate Standards & Policy and the Board of Conduct Affairs, among others.
UGS co-chair Laila Ali ’28 also presented the Joint Bill to Establish a Community Center Working Group. The bill aims to establish a working group within the ASSU to engage in more frequent communication with staff at community centers such as the Black Community Services Center, El Centro Chicano y Latino, the Women’s Community Center and The Markaz, among others.
Ali said the purpose of the working group was to “increase transparency and trust between administrators and students” amid increasingly politicized environments regarding community centers.
“These are places where students build community and come to often as a support system throughout their years here at Stanford,” Ali said. “This working group was what we landed on to be able to create that transparency and support amongst student staff.”