On Wednesday, anti-Israel agitators occupied Columbia University’s South Lawn for hours as Columbia University President Minoush Shafik testified before Congress.
Dozens of protesters pitched tents on school grounds, demanding the university divest from companies with ties to Israel. Shafik, along with co-chairs of Columbia University’s Board of Trustees, is at the Capitol to testify about anti-Semitism on Columbia’s campus.
“The presence of tents on the South Lawn is a safety concern and violates university policy,” a university spokesperson told the student newspaper, The Spectator. “We are informing the students that they have violated university policy and that they must leave for their own safety and the administration of the university.”
Protesters set up tents early Wednesday morning as the university closed its campus to ID holders only in anticipation of unrest related to Shafiq’s testimony.
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On Wednesday, April 17, 2024, anti-Israel demonstrators occupied the main lawn of Columbia University’s campus in New York City. (WNYW)
“The anti-apartheid movement and the student organizing struggle at Columbia University have been alive for more than 60 years, and when we come here today, we bring all of those organizers with us,” student demonstrators said. One person, Katherine Elias, spoke from the audience. .
Shafik and his colleagues were called to testify before the House Education and Labor Committee about their efforts to combat anti-Semitism on campuses, which has skyrocketed in the United States since October 7.
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At the height of the protests late last year, the state of Columbia banned two anti-Israel student organizations. Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace both violated the university’s policy against harassing other students.
Columbia University President Minoush Shafik testified at a hearing of the House Education and Labor Committee entitled “Columbia in Crisis: Columbia University’s Response to Anti-Semitism.”
Shafik previewed her testimony Tuesday in a Wall Street Journal op-ed, saying she and other administrators did their best to weigh students’ safety against their right to free speech.
“A more complex issue was the conflict between the free speech rights of pro-Palestinian protesters and the impact these protests were having on Jewish students and their supporters. Some of the activities and things said on social media have been deeply disturbing and frightening,” Shafiq wrote. “It is our university’s mission to seek to reconcile the speech rights of one part of our community with the rights of another part of our community to live in a supportive environment, or at least an environment free from fear, harassment, and discrimination. and on campuses across the country.”
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Columbia University is just the latest high-profile school to face congressional scrutiny since Oct. 7. Leaders from MIT, Harvard University, and the University of Pennsylvania also testified in December. Subsequently, the presidents of Harvard University and the University of Pennsylvania resigned.
Dr. Claudine Gay (left), former president of Harvard University, and Liz McGill (center), former president of the University of Pennsylvania, all resigned after testifying before Congress. ((Photo credit: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images))
In March, students on campuses across the country testified about their experiences with rising anti-Semitism on campus.
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The students explained that Vicious anti-Semitic incident It’s happening at Harvard University, Columbia University, the University of California at Berkeley, and several other universities.
