NEW DELHI: Columbia University announced early Wednesday that it was making significant progress in negotiations with pro-Palestinian student protesters who had established a tent encampment on campus. The university extended the deadline for the protesters to clear out, despite ongoing tensions. The protesters agreed to dismantle and remove a substantial number of tents, leaving a smaller encampment on the upper Manhattan campus Wednesday morning.
Meanwhile, at California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt, protesters began blocking building entrances Monday evening using furniture, tents, chains, and zip ties.The campus is located approximately 300 miles north of San Francisco. Both campuses are experiencing escalating demonstrations by university students demanding that schools sever financial ties with Israel and divest from companies supporting the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. Numerous protesters have been arrested on charges of trespassing or disorderly conduct.
Columbia President Minouche Shafik had initially set a midnight Tuesday deadline to reach an agreement to clear the encampment. However, by around 3 am, the university reported that there was “constructive dialogue” and that conversations would continue for an additional 48 hours. The university’s statement also mentioned that student protesters would ensure the departure of non-Columbia affiliates and that only Columbia University students would participate in the protest. Additionally, the protesters agreed to comply with city fire department requirements and took measures to make the encampment welcoming to all, prohibiting discriminatory or harassing language.
The university’s statement was issued hours before US House Speaker Mike Johnson’s visit to Columbia to meet with Jewish students and address antisemitism on college campuses. At the University of Minnesota, Democratic US Rep. Ilhan Omar attended a protest late Tuesday, shortly after nine protesters were arrested on campus when police dismantled an encampment in front of the library.
Earlier in the afternoon, hundreds had rallied to demand their release. “I am incredibly moved by your courage and bravery as a student body in putting your bodies on the line to stand in solidarity to end the genocide taking place in Gaza,” Omar told those gathered, as reported by the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
Omar’s daughter was among more than 100 pro-Palestinian demonstrators at Columbia who were arrested Thursday, inspiring protesters nationwide to establish encampments.
Also on Tuesday night, police arrested more than 200 protesters blocking traffic during a non-college demonstration demanding a permanent cease-fire in Gaza at Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn, near the home of Sen. Chuck Schumer. The protest was organized by Jewish Voice for Peace on the second night of Passover, with protesters laying down a large circular banner depicting the food on a Seder plate.
At Cal Poly Humboldt, protesters chanted, “We are not afraid of you!” before officers in riot gear pushed into them at the building’s entrance, as shown in a video. Student Peyton McKinzie reported seeing police grabbing one woman by the hair and another student having their head bandaged for an injury. Three students have been arrested, according to a statement from the school, which shut down the campus until Wednesday. Students had occupied a second campus building Tuesday.
Another encampment was set up Tuesday at the University of Rochester in upstate New York, where Omar Darwesh, a Palestinian senior, said he has lost relatives to the war. “We’re not calling for the destruction of Israel; we’re never talking about threatening Jews. The focus is on us and what we need, and that’s being treated like a human. We have to find a way to coexist,” he told TV station WHEC. University of Rochester officials said in a statement that the protesters must follow ground rules, including presenting university identification if asked.
The surge in demonstrations has left universities grappling with the challenge of balancing campus safety with free speech rights. Many have long tolerated the protests, which largely demanded that schools condemn Israel’s assault on Gaza and divest from companies that sell weapons to Israel. However, universities are now imposing more stringent discipline, citing safety concerns as some Jewish students claim that criticism of Israel has crossed the line into antisemitism.
Protests had been simmering for months but intensified after last week’s arrests at Columbia. By late Monday at New York University, police reported that 133 protesters were taken into custody and all had been released with summonses to appear in court on disorderly conduct charges. In Connecticut, police arrested 60 protesters, including 47 students, at Yale after they refused to leave an encampment on a plaza at the center of campus.
Yale President Peter Salovey stated that protesters had declined an offer to end the demonstration and meet with trustees.
Meanwhile, at California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt, protesters began blocking building entrances Monday evening using furniture, tents, chains, and zip ties.The campus is located approximately 300 miles north of San Francisco. Both campuses are experiencing escalating demonstrations by university students demanding that schools sever financial ties with Israel and divest from companies supporting the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. Numerous protesters have been arrested on charges of trespassing or disorderly conduct.
Columbia President Minouche Shafik had initially set a midnight Tuesday deadline to reach an agreement to clear the encampment. However, by around 3 am, the university reported that there was “constructive dialogue” and that conversations would continue for an additional 48 hours. The university’s statement also mentioned that student protesters would ensure the departure of non-Columbia affiliates and that only Columbia University students would participate in the protest. Additionally, the protesters agreed to comply with city fire department requirements and took measures to make the encampment welcoming to all, prohibiting discriminatory or harassing language.
The university’s statement was issued hours before US House Speaker Mike Johnson’s visit to Columbia to meet with Jewish students and address antisemitism on college campuses. At the University of Minnesota, Democratic US Rep. Ilhan Omar attended a protest late Tuesday, shortly after nine protesters were arrested on campus when police dismantled an encampment in front of the library.
Earlier in the afternoon, hundreds had rallied to demand their release. “I am incredibly moved by your courage and bravery as a student body in putting your bodies on the line to stand in solidarity to end the genocide taking place in Gaza,” Omar told those gathered, as reported by the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
Omar’s daughter was among more than 100 pro-Palestinian demonstrators at Columbia who were arrested Thursday, inspiring protesters nationwide to establish encampments.
Also on Tuesday night, police arrested more than 200 protesters blocking traffic during a non-college demonstration demanding a permanent cease-fire in Gaza at Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn, near the home of Sen. Chuck Schumer. The protest was organized by Jewish Voice for Peace on the second night of Passover, with protesters laying down a large circular banner depicting the food on a Seder plate.
At Cal Poly Humboldt, protesters chanted, “We are not afraid of you!” before officers in riot gear pushed into them at the building’s entrance, as shown in a video. Student Peyton McKinzie reported seeing police grabbing one woman by the hair and another student having their head bandaged for an injury. Three students have been arrested, according to a statement from the school, which shut down the campus until Wednesday. Students had occupied a second campus building Tuesday.
Another encampment was set up Tuesday at the University of Rochester in upstate New York, where Omar Darwesh, a Palestinian senior, said he has lost relatives to the war. “We’re not calling for the destruction of Israel; we’re never talking about threatening Jews. The focus is on us and what we need, and that’s being treated like a human. We have to find a way to coexist,” he told TV station WHEC. University of Rochester officials said in a statement that the protesters must follow ground rules, including presenting university identification if asked.
The surge in demonstrations has left universities grappling with the challenge of balancing campus safety with free speech rights. Many have long tolerated the protests, which largely demanded that schools condemn Israel’s assault on Gaza and divest from companies that sell weapons to Israel. However, universities are now imposing more stringent discipline, citing safety concerns as some Jewish students claim that criticism of Israel has crossed the line into antisemitism.
Protests had been simmering for months but intensified after last week’s arrests at Columbia. By late Monday at New York University, police reported that 133 protesters were taken into custody and all had been released with summonses to appear in court on disorderly conduct charges. In Connecticut, police arrested 60 protesters, including 47 students, at Yale after they refused to leave an encampment on a plaza at the center of campus.
Yale President Peter Salovey stated that protesters had declined an offer to end the demonstration and meet with trustees.