New York — Columbia University said early Wednesday it was making “significant progress” with pro-Palestinian student protesters who have set up a tented camp and that it was extending the deadline to vacate, still at the Ivy League campus in upper Manhattan. The standoff remains tense.
Student protesters have “committed to dismantling and removing a large number of tents,” the university said in a statement. A small camp remained on the premises on Wednesday morning.
Across the country, protesters at California State Polytechnic University in Humboldt, about 300 miles (480 kilometers) north of San Francisco, began using furniture, tents, chains and zip ties to block building entrances on Monday evening. Gave.
Both campuses are part of intensifying demonstrations by university students over Israel's war with Hamas, demanding that schools cut financial ties with Israel and divest from companies that enable its months-long conflict. Is doing. Dozens of people have been arrested for trespassing or disorderly conduct.
Colombia's President Minogue Shafik set a midnight deadline to reach an agreement with the students to vacate the camp in a statement on Tuesday, otherwise “we will have to consider alternative options.”
By around 3 a.m. the university said it had held “constructive talks” and would continue talks for 48 hours.
The statement said student protesters “will ensure that those who are not affiliated with Columbia leave.” Only Columbia University students will participate in the protest.
The statement said student protesters will also follow city fire department requirements and “have taken steps to welcome all at camp and prohibit discriminatory or harassing language.”
The university's statement was released hours before U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson travels to Columbia to meet with Jewish students and address anti-Semitism on college campuses.
Earlier Tuesday night, police arrested more than 200 protesters blocking traffic during a non-college demonstration demanding a permanent ceasefire in Gaza at Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn, near the home of Senator Chuck Schumer. A protest was organized by Jewish Voice for Peace on the second night of Passover, and protesters held a large circular banner depicting food on a Seder plate.
At Cal Poly Humboldt, protesters chanted, “We're not afraid of you!” Video shows officers in riot gear pushing them away at the entrance of the building, before she was walking around campus on Monday when she saw police grabbing a woman by the hair, and another student. His head was bandaged due to injury.
“I think a lot of students are in shock about it,” he said.
Three students have been arrested, according to a statement from the school, which had closed its campus as of Wednesday. The students had occupied the second campus building on Tuesday.
Another camp was set up at the University of Rochester in upstate New York on Tuesday. Palestinian senior Omar Darwish said he had lost relatives in the war.
“We are not calling for the destruction of Israel, we are never talking about threatening Jews – the focus is on us and what we need, and being treated like a human being. We have to find a way to co-exist,” he told TV station WHEC.
University of Rochester officials said in a statement that protesters must follow ground rules, including presenting university identification when asked.
As protests grow, universities are struggling to balance campus safety with the right to free speech. Many endured long protests, which mainly demanded that schools condemn Israel's attack on Gaza and divest from companies that sell arms to Israel.
Now, citing safety concerns, universities are imposing more stringent discipline as some Jewish students say criticism of Israel has morphed into anti-Semitism.
The protests had been going on for months, but intensified after more than 100 pro-Palestinian protesters camping in Colombia were arrested on Thursday.
By late Monday night at New York University, police said 133 protesters had been detained and all had been released with summonses to appear in court on disorderly conduct charges.
In Connecticut, police arrested 60 protesters at Yale, including 47 students, after they refused to leave camp on a plaza in the center of campus.
Yale President Peter Salovey said the protesters rejected an offer to end the demonstration and meet with the trustees. After multiple warnings, school officials determined that “the situation is no longer safe”, so police evacuated the encampment and made arrests.
A demonstration at the University of Michigan on Tuesday grew to about 40 tents, and nine war protesters at the University of Minnesota were arrested after police cleared a camp in front of the library. Hundreds of people took out a rally in the afternoon demanding his release.
Harvard University in Massachusetts has tried to stay one step ahead of the protests by closing most of the gates to its famous Harvard Yard and limiting access to people with school identification. The school has also posted signs that warn against setting up tents or tables on campus without permission.
Christian Deleon, a literature doctoral student, said he understands why the Harvard administration is trying to avoid protests, but he said there should still be a space for students to express what they think.
“We should all be able to use these types of spaces to protest, to make our voices heard,” he said.
Ben Wizner, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union, said college leaders face extremely difficult decisions because they have a responsibility to ensure that people can express their views, even if others may find them offensive, as well. Protect students from threats and intimidation.
The New York Civil Liberties Union cautioned universities not to rush into law enforcement in a statement Tuesday.
“Officials should not conflate criticism of Israel with anti-Semitism or use hate incidents as an excuse to silence political views they oppose,” said Donna Lieberman, the group's executive director. “
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Perry reported from Meredith, New Hampshire. Contributing to this report were Associated Press journalists from around the country, including Will Weisert, Larry Lage, Steve LeBlanc, Dave Collins, Jim Salter, Haven Daly, Jesse Bedayan and John Antczak.
(TagstoTranslate)Israel-Hamas war