Columbia University has announced a switch to remote classes on Monday in an effort to ease heightened tensions on campus stemming from Israel’s war in Gaza.
‘The decibel of our disagreements has only increased in recent days,’ said university president Minouche Shafik in a statement. ‘We need a reset.’
The move to online learning comes shortly after the suspension and arrest of dozens of Columbia students over a protest encampment on the campus lawn, demanding university divestment from companies linked to Israel.
Yale University also witnessed similar unrest, with police arresting students who set up tents on campus and urged the university towards divestment. The Yale Police Department reported 40 to 45 arrests.
These incidents are the latest in a series of ongoing campus protests since Hamas’ attack on Israel in October. The ensuing conflict has resulted in the deaths of over 34,000 Palestinians, with two-thirds being women and children, according to local health officials.
Columbia students established the ‘Gaza Solidarity Encampment’ on the school’s south lawn on Wednesday to denounce Israel’s war and blockade in Gaza. The protest coincided with Shafik’s congressional testimony highlighting antisemitism as a pressing campus issue that would not be tolerated.
On Thursday, Shafik called in the New York Police Department, stating that the demonstration posed ‘a clear and present danger’ and students had repeatedly violated campus protocol. Over 100 individuals were detained.
Tensions remained high over the weekend. Elie Buechler, a Columbia rabbi, advised Jewish students to return home and stay there due to safety concerns, citing incidents like individuals displaying antisemitic signs. He expressed disappointment with the administration’s handling of antisemitism on campus.
The arrests have drawn criticism. The Columbia Daily Spectator’s editorial board accused the university of ignoring student pleas for meaningful engagement and instead adopting ‘a path of surveillance, oppression, and authoritarian policies.’
Solidarity encampments have sprung up at several other universities, including Yale, New York University, MIT, Tufts University, Emerson College, and The New School.
At Yale, hundreds of protesters occupied Beinecke Plaza since Friday night, erecting around 40 tents, but the demonstration remained peaceful, as per the Yale Daily News.
University leaders have taken action against student protesters elsewhere. Vanderbilt University expelled three students after a group stormed the university president’s office, injuring a security guard. The University of Southern California revoked the valedictorian’s commencement speech due to unspecified safety concerns, after she made controversial social media posts regarding the Israel-Hamas conflict.
The University of Pennsylvania shut down the student group Penn Students Against the Occupation of Palestine for non-compliance with university policies governing student organizations.
