Columbia’s president has called for a “plan to dismantle” the occupation, with students protesting in favor of Gaza even facing the possibility of National Guard intervention.
The uproar at universities in the United States is expanding as the days go by due to the pro-Palestinian mobilizations of students who are practically expressing their solidarity with the besieged Gaza.
Students across the country are protesting the war and in several cases are asking their universities –including some of the most famous internationally, such as Columbia, Yale, MIT etc.- support the call for a ceasefire and disassociate from companies with ties to Israel.
On Tuesday, New York’s Columbia University decided that for the rest of this academic term, classes will be held only remotely. At the same time, the president of the Foundation, Nemat Shafik, called to “breakup plan goes ahead” of occupation with scenes on the campus, stressing that he set a deadline for an agreement to the organizers until midnight, which was pushed back to 8 am local time (3 pm Greek time).
Student gathering at Columbia University, New York
Associated Press
If university-student talks fail, Shafiq threatened, Columbia “should consider alternative options to clean up the West Lawn and restore calm to the campus.” A Columbia representative, however, declined to comment on whether the administration will take immediate steps to remove the protesters or what form they will take.
More than 100 people protesting the war in Gaza were arrested at Columbia last week after Shafiq called campus police in what she described as “an emergency decision” to keep the campus safe. The move to call the police was heavily criticized by student organizations and human rights groups.
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In a letter addressed to “colleagues in the Columbia community,” the Foundation’s president states that “fully supports the importance of freedom of speech, respects the right to protest and recognizes that many of the protesters gathered peacefully.” However, according to her, “squatting raises serious safety concerns, disrupts campus life, and has created a tense and sometimes hostile environment for many members of our community. It is important to proceed with a plan for its dissolution.”
According to her, negotiations have been going on for several days “to discuss the basis for dismantling the tent occupation and following university policies in the future.”
“I very much hope that these discussions will be successful” says and addresses an ultimatum: “If that doesn’t happen, we should consider alternative options to clear and restore calm to the campus so students can complete the semester and graduate.”
He also emphasizes that “we will not tolerate bullying, harassment or discriminatory behaviour”, announcing “disciplinary proceedings”.
When Shafiq’s letter about the ultimatum reached students’ inboxes around 10 p.m. on Tuesday (local time), the protesters and others who had gathered outside the campus gates began to read it aloud. The student organizers announced to the group of protesters that a police operation was expected during the night and asked their fellow students to wear a red belt if they were willing to be arrested and a yellow if not.
A student group, which has been suspended by the university, said in a statement that the Foundation’s leaders threatened to call in the National Guard if the protesters did not disperse. A spokeswoman for the governor of New York, Kathy Hochul, however, referred to her previous comments that she had no plans to call in the National Guard.
