Protests involving pro-Palestinian student demonstrators and university administrations escalated in intensity on both the East and West Coasts of the United States on Wednesday night.
At Columbia University in New York City, demonstrators faced a midnight deadline imposed by the administration to clear out an encampment. Meanwhile, dozens of protesters barricaded themselves inside two buildings on the campus of California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt, for a second consecutive night. These confrontations are part of escalating demonstrations across the country by university students, sparked by Israel’s conflict with Hamas. As of present, these demonstrations have led to numerous arrests for trespassing and disorderly conduct.
Columbia University President Minouche Shafik issued a statement on Wednesday, giving students until midnight to reach an agreement to dismantle the encampment. Failure to do so would prompt the university to “consider alternative options.” The deadline passed without any news of an agreement. Videos captured by observers show some protesters dismantling their tents, while others remained steadfast in their positions and delivered speeches.
The heightened tensions emerged on the eve of U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson’s visit to Columbia campus to meet with Jewish students and address concerns about antisemitism on college campuses.
Across the country, at California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt, demonstrators began using furniture, tents, chains, and zip ties to obstruct building entrances on Monday evening. The defiance was somewhat unexpected in this conservative region of California, approximately 300 miles north of San Francisco.
“We are not afraid of you!” chanted the protesters before officers clad in riot gear moved to disperse them at the building’s entrance, as seen in video footage. Student Peyton McKinzie described witnessing police grabbing a woman by the hair and another student receiving a bandage for an injury. “I think a lot of students are in shock about it,” she told The Associated Press.
According to a statement from Cal Poly Humboldt, three students were arrested, and the campus remained closed until Wednesday. An undisclosed number of students occupied a second campus building on Tuesday.
The surge in demonstrations has left universities grappling with the challenge of balancing campus safety with the right to free speech. Many institutions have historically tolerated protests advocating condemnation of Israel’s actions in Gaza and divestment from companies supplying weapons to Israel. However, universities are now implementing more stringent disciplinary measures, citing safety concerns and allegations by some Jewish students that criticism of Israel has veered into antisemitism.
These protests have been simmering for months but gained momentum after over 100 pro-Palestinian demonstrators who had set up camp on Columbia’s upper Manhattan campus were detained on Thursday. By Monday evening at New York University, authorities reported arresting 133 protesters, all of whom were 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 heart of the campus. Yale President Peter Salovey stated that protesters had declined an offer to end the demonstration and meet with trustees. Following several warnings, university officials deemed “the situation was no longer safe,” prompting police to clear the encampment and make arrests.
On Tuesday in the Midwest, a demonstration at the hub of the University of Michigan campus had expanded to nearly 40 tents. At the University of Minnesota, nine anti-war protesters were arrested after police dismantled an encampment in front of the library. Hundreds gathered on the Minnesota campus in the afternoon, demanding the protesters’ release.
Harvard University in Massachusetts has attempted to preempt protests by locking most gates into its renowned Harvard Yard and restricting access to individuals with school identification. The university has also posted signs prohibiting the erection of tents or tables on campus without authorization. Christian Deleon, a Ph.D. student in Literature, expressed understanding of the university’s motive to prevent protests but emphasized the need for designated spaces where students can voice their opinions. “We should all be able to use these kinds of spaces to protest, to make our voices heard,” he said.
Ben Wizner, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union, acknowledged the challenging decisions facing college administrators. They bear the responsibility of ensuring individuals can express their views, even if they are deemed offensive by others, while simultaneously safeguarding students from threats and intimidation. In a statement issued on Tuesday, the New York Civil Liberties Union cautioned universities against hasty involvement of law enforcement.
“Officials should not conflate criticism of Israel with antisemitism or use hate incidents as a pretext to silence political views they oppose,” said Donna Lieberman, the group’s executive director.
Leo Auerbach, a student at the University of Michigan, indicated that the differing perspectives on the conflict had not made him feel unsafe on campus. However, he expressed apprehension about the “hateful rhetoric and antisemitic sentiment being echoed.” “If we’re trying to create an inclusive community on campus, there needs to be constructive dialogue between groups,” Auerbach said. “And right now, there’s no dialogue that is occurring.”
At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Hannah Didehbani, a senior in physics, attributed the inspiration behind the protests to those at Columbia. “Right now, there are several professors on campus who are getting direct research funding from Israel’s ministry of defense,” she said. “We’ve been calling for MIT to cut those research ties.”
Demonstrators at the University of California, Berkeley, where an encampment of about 30 tents stood on Tuesday, also drew inspiration from protesters at Columbia, whom they regard as “the heart of the student movement,” according to law student Malak Afaneh.
The campus protests originated in response to the deadly attacks by Hamas in southern Israel, in which militants killed approximately 1,200 individuals, primarily civilians, and held roughly 250 hostages. The ensuing conflict resulted in the deaths of over 34,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, according to the local health ministry. The ministry does not differentiate between combatants and noncombatants but estimates that at least two-thirds of the deceased are women and children.
