Columbia University warned students for the return of tent campuses after Ivy League schools noticed anti-Israel protesters’ plans to set the demonstrations on stage.
“We are aware of plans that could set up camps on our Columbia campus,” the school’s public safety forces blew up in emails to students and staff on Wednesday.
“We want to make it clear that camps and camps on Columbia campuses are prohibited by university policies.”
The school vowed to quickly demolish the tent that appeared on the Morningside Heights campus and threatened to arrest destructive protesters.
“We value free expression and the right to protest,” the email continued. “These activities must be implemented in accordance with university regulations and policies to ensure the safety of our communities.
The alerts were raised after about 100 people who held a secret planning meeting in Brooklyn earlier this week about the establishment of the camp on Thursday and Friday.
“When we take over the lawn, our goal is to unite the space and make it our own,” one organizer said, according to a recording of the conference.
The ringleader, who refused to use his real name and wore a face covering, urged those planning to attend the protest that he would not arrive on campus wearing masks to overthrow campus security.
“Every action we do brings police and brings oppression, we think deeply about it and we are aware of it,” one organizer said.
“And we are stuck in this situation where inaction is also violence.”
The planned protest came a year after an anti-Israel agitator forced Colombia to lockdown when similar tent camps fell into chaos, resulting in dozens of arrests and destruction.
