Columbia Student Protesters Occupy Building, Trapping Janitor Inside
Early Tuesday, numerous Columbia University students forcefully entered Hamilton Hall on the New York campus and sealed themselves off inside, following the university's move to suspend students who didn't comply with a directive to leave a pro-Palestinian encampment. "Ensuring the safety of everyone in our community is our top priority,"
"The safety of every single member of this community is paramount," said Ben Chang, vice president for communications at Columbia University, adding "In light of the protest activity, we have asked members of the University community who can avoid coming to the Morningside campus to do so; essential personnel should report to work according to university policy."
Holy…. pic.twitter.com/42Lw4kaRHY
— Jessica Schwalb (@jessicaschwalb7) April 30, 2024
Taking over Hamilton Hall as done in 1968, Columbia students unfurl a banner that reads "Hind's Hall," in reference to Hind Rajab, a six-year-old girl killed by Israeli forces.
— Prem Thakker (@prem_thakker) April 30, 2024
Hundreds of students cheer as the banner is revealed, erupting into chants to "Free Palestine." pic.twitter.com/Oi8WgdZmqf
The New York Times reports that students started occupying the hall at approximately 12:35 a.m. They linked arms, effectively barricading the main entrance to the building at the Ivy League school, following a campus march while chanting "free Palestine," as noted by the publication.
A statement posted on Instagram by student organizations declared that the protesters had "taken matters into their own hands" and intended to stay in the building until the university agrees to "divest from death." The demonstrators are calling on the university to halt its investments in companies allegedly benefiting from Israel's conflict with Hamas in Gaza.
The statement included video footage that appeared to show the students carrying metal barricades into Hamilton Hall as other students cheered them on.
“This escalation is in line with the historical student movements of 1968, 1985, and 1996 which Columbia repressed then and celebrates now,” the statement read. “This action will force the university to confront the blood on its hands.”
In the statement, the student group further accused the university of having been “complicit” in “Israel’s ongoing genocidal assault on the Gaza strip” for the past seven months.
“The students are on the right side of history,” the statement continued. “We know that the university will remember them as anti-apartheid, anti-genocide activists with moral clarity.”
Protesters Make Demands
According to Politico, protesters hung a sign reading “intifada,” which is Arabic for uprising, from the front of the building.
A spokesperson for the New York Police Department told Politico that law enforcement officers were outside the university campus as of Tuesday; however, they declined to elaborate further on exactly how many officers were on site or whether they had authorization to enter the school grounds.
The Epoch Times has contacted a spokesperson at Columbia University and the New York Police Department for further comment.
The takeover of Hamilton Hall occurred just hours after the university confirmed that it had begun suspending some students. The pro-Palestinian students failed to disband before Monday’s 2 p.m. deadline.
Students have occupied the lawn in the middle of campus—in which graduation ceremonies are scheduled to take place for roughly 15,000 students on May 15—for nearly two weeks while calling on the university to disclose and divest from any of its financial ties to Israel.
They are also calling for an end to alleged “land grabs” in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City and Palestine, no more policing on the university campus, and no academic ties with Israeli universities.
However, negotiations between university officials and student protest leaders broke down earlier in the day when the university rejected their demands, prompting officials to issue the 2 p.m. deadline.
In a statement, Minouche Shafik, Columbia’s president, said that ultimately, the university will not divest from Israel, adding that the school is committed to maintaining its core principles and shared values, which include ensuring no students suffer from harassment and discrimination and no anti-Semitic language is used.
Fox News reported that the students trapped at least one janitor in the building, claiming they were holding the janitor crew hostage.
School, Students Fail to Reach Agreement
“Both sides in these discussions put forward robust and thoughtful offers and worked in good faith to reach common ground,” Ms. Shafik said. “We thank them all for their diligent work, long hours, and careful effort and wish they had reached a different outcome.”
While the University will not divest from Israel, it has offered to “develop an expedited timeline for review of new proposals from the students by the Advisory Committee for Socially Responsible Investing, the body that considers divestment matters,” Ms. Shafik noted.
“The University also offered to publish a process for students to access a list of Columbia’s direct investment holdings, and to increase the frequency of updates to that list of holdings,” she added.
Ben Chang, vice president for communications at Columbia University, confirmed the suspensions had begun in a press conference late Monday, USA Today reports.
He added that students had been notified in advance that they would face disciplinary action, including suspension if they did not vacate the encampment by 2 p.m. ET and sign a form committing to abide by student politics until either June 30, 2025, or until their graduation, whichever came first.
The site of the protests has created an unwelcoming environment for many Jewish students and faculty members, he said. It has also been a source of loud noise.
“We’ve been suspending students as part of this next phase of our efforts to ensure safety on campus,” Mr. Chang said.
Mr. Chang did not provide further details regarding how many students from Columbia and its affiliate Barnard College have been disciplined. However, he confirmed that those suspended would not be able to finish the semester or graduate, Axios reports.
They will also be banned from entering any campus housing or academic buildings, he added.
