From ‘solidarity’ camps on campuses, U.S. students call for cease re in Gaza
Several U.S. campuses, taking inspiration from the protests in Columbia University, have peacefully escalated their protests, which have been going on since the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel and the resultant war on Gaza, even as they face repression f
n April 18, more than 100 pro-Palestinian protesters who were camped out in tents in Columbia University, New York, were arrested by the police. Since then, similar encampments and protests have risen across U.S. campuses, including in New York University, Yale University and the University of Texas.
These protests are an escalation of the demonstrations on U.S. campuses ever since the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel and Israel’s subsequent bombardment of the Gaza Strip. Protests have been going on in U.S. universities ever since, calling for a permanent ceasere. These protests peaked mid-April when students of Columbia started camping out in front of the university campus lawn, creating, as they call it, a ’Gaza solidarity encampment’.
Their primary demands: Columbia university should divest funds from any company/institution that is associated with Israel or prots from “Israeli apartheid”; nancial transparency into the university’s investments; and amnesty for all students/faculty that have been participating in the ongoing pro-Palestinian
Omovement. As per the Columbia Daily Spectator, the student newspaper of the university, on April 22, Columbia College passed a divestment referendum by a large margin.
The referendum asked students whether the university should divest nancially from Israel, cancel the Tel Aviv Global Center, and end Columbia’s dual degree programme with the Tel Aviv University. The rst question passed with 76.55% of voters in favour, while the latter two garnered 68.36% and 65.62% support, respectively.
‘Rich history’
Columbia University has a rich history when it comes to student movements. The last time protests of this scale rocked the campus was in 1968 when students protested the U.S.’s role in the Vietnam War and university policies they considered racist. Similar push-back happened then as well with almost 700 people being arrested by the police.
Several campuses, taking inspiration from the protests in Columbia, have peacefully escalated their protests, which have also faced repression from respective university administrations. On April 25, more than 30 people were arrested at a protest held at the University of Texas.
The protests have increasingly polarised student groups and pitted them against each other. While the pro-Palestinian movement has asserted that their movement is peaceful and that their sole goal was to ght against the ongoing “genocide” in Gaza
and the U.S.’s complicity in the same, certain Jewish student groups allege that there have been instances of anti-Semitism in the protests and that Jews feel unsafe on the campus.
Several Congresspeople have said the protests were the reason for the alleged increase in anti-Semitism on the campus. New York City Mayor Eric Adams stated that he is “horried and disgusted” with the anti-Semitism being “spewed” at Columbia University.
The Israel state’s ocial ◣ account reposted a video of the Columbia protests, calling the protestors “terrorists”.
Democratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, on the other hand, has backed the protests, stating the arrests have “ignited a nationwide Gaza Solidarity moveof ment”. She stated on ◣ that “this is more than the students hoped for and I am glad to see this type of solidarity”.
White House weighs in
On April 21, the White House also weighed into the issue with a statement which said, “even in recent days, we have seen harassment and calls for violence against Jews. This blatant anti-Semitism is reprehensible and dangerous — and it has absolutely no place on college campuses, or anywhere in our country.”
The ‘disclose and divest’ demand of the protestors have gained much traction over the week. It has its roots in the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement which is a non-violent Palestinian-led movement, calling for boycott and economic sanctions against Israel.
A report by the Associated Press quotes MIT students who state that MIT has accepted more than $11 million from the Israel Defence Ministry over the past decade. Similarly, protestors at the University of Michigan say the university sends more than $6 billion to investment managers who prot from Israeli companies or contractors.
However, University of Michigan ocials said they have no direct investments with Israeli companies, and that indirect investments made through funds amount to a fraction of 1% the university’s $18 billion endowment. This sentiment was echoed in a report by the The New York Times, which said universities have less direct control over their investments, opting instead for asset managers to oversee portfolios. Some university administrators have also made the point that very little of their endowments is invested in companies that could be linked to Israel.
According to the Federal Student Aid database, from 2020-22, Columbia University received over $2 million as foreign gifts and contracts from Israel. However, it is unclear from where in Israel these funds came from, who the investors were and what the fund was used for.
On the other hand, universities are losing funding from investors due to what investors are calling ‘anti-Israel protests’.
Tensions remain high across U.S. college campuses. In Columbia University, the administration and the protestors have been unable to come to an agreement. Student protestors have been asked to voluntarily disperse by 2 p.m. on Monday and sign a form attesting that they would abide by all university policies, refusing which they would be suspended. It remains to be seen whether these measures will deter protestors across college campuses.