Friday marked the third day of protests at Columbia University. A day earlier, more than 100 students were arrested and suspended from school for setting up an encampment in support of the Palestinian people in Gaza.
Columbia University President Minouche Shafik had called the NYPD for help, claiming the encampments violated school policy and created a “harassing and intimidating environment.”
What You Need To Know
- Friday marked the third day of protests at Columbia University
- Demonstrators rallied at 110th Street and Central Park West, before they marched up Frederick Douglas Boulevard towards the school’s campus
- Students continued demonstrations on the school’s South Lawn. This time, there were no tents, as students sat on blankets instead
- A day earlier, Columbia University President Minouche Shafik called the NYPD for help, claiming the encampments violated school policy and created a “harassing and intimidating environment”
Demonstrators began with a rally at 110th Street and Central Park West, before they marched up Frederick Douglas Boulevard towards the school’s campus and ended at 116th Street and Broadway.
“It’s incredibly important that the public shows that they stand with the students as the university is trying to repress them more and more,” Gabi Silva, an organizer of Friday’s event and a member of the Party for Socialism and Liberation, said.
David Huyssen said he grew up on Columbia’s campus, as his father is a professor emeritus at the university. He said he found the crackdown to be antithetical to what he thought the university stood for.
“I found the calling of the police on students at the campus to be an absolute violation of freedom, of the principles of what a university stands for: open speech,” Huyssen said.
Students continued demonstrations on the school’s South Lawn. This time, there were no tents, as students sat on blankets instead.
Some students said there has been tension on campus since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas.
“It’s been a chaotic six months, particularly for Jewish students, many of whom picked up and left yesterday when this all popped off. Many of the chants were vile and vitriolic, so it’s been a state of chaos,” student David Pomerantz said.
There have also been continued demonstrations outside the university. Protesters said they’re in solidarity with the students.
“I think it is a real shame that Columbia is taking members of their community, who are so dedicated to bettering that community, and trying to silence them. It doesn’t work. It’s not going to work,” demonstrator June Bendich said.
On Wednesday, a group of demonstrators traveled by train from Union Square to Columbia University, joining protesters on campus from the “Occupy Columbia: All Out for Palestine” rally, according to police.
Protesters set up tents on Columbia’s South Lawn for more than 30 hours. The university said that was in violation of its rules and asked the NYPD for help.
Cops took more than 100 people into custody Thursday, charging them with trespassing. Among those arrested were Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar’s daughter, according to NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban.
Demonstrators on Friday echoed the protesters from earlier in the week, calling on the university to divest any investment it has in Israel or with Israeli companies and an end to violence.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Columbia said: “While the encampment has been dismantled, our community has had protest activity on campus since October, and we expect that activity to continue. We have rules regarding the time, place, and manner that apply to protest activity and we will continue to enforce those. We remain in regular contact with our students and student groups and are committed to ensuring the core functions of the University continue.”