Gates Closed at Columbia University as Students Stage Gaza Protest

Storyful

Access continued to be restricted at Columbia University in New York City on Wednesday, April 17, as students protesting Israel’s actions in Gaza established an encampment and staged a sit-in protest on the college’s South Lawn.

University officials attempted to negotiate with demonstrators and warned them that the NYPD might carry out arrests, according to a reporter at the scene.

The protest was held as the university’s president, Nemat Shafik, was testifying before the House Committee on Education and the Workforce on the issues of antisemitism, student safety, and free speech. Credit: Storyful

Video transcript

[BIRDS CHIRPING]

[CHATTER]

[CAR HONKS]

[CAR HONKS]

[BIRDS CHIRPING]

[CAR HONKS]

[CAR HONKS]

  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next

Latest stories

  • Revealed: private school students reap thousands more than public students in disability funding

    Exclusive: new data shows children with disabilities at wealthy fee-paying schools are receiving up to six times the government support funding as those at public schools

  • Watch: Protesters call for Islamic state in Germany

    More than 1,000 people marched through Hamburg on Saturday calling for a caliphate in Germany.

  • Disabled boy attempted suicide after being suspended for touching teacher’s face, mother claims

    The then 16-year-old was ‘an absolute mental wreck’ after the incident, his mother says

  • Schools with complete mobile bans twice as likely to be rated outstanding, report finds

    Schools that ban mobile phones completely are more than twice as likely to be rated outstanding, a study found.

  • How universities are cracking down on a swell of tension months into student protests over Israel’s bombardment of Gaza

    US colleges have been using law enforcement – along with academic suspensions and, for at least one school, expulsion – to try to bring to heel student demonstrations.

  • 'Damp and mouldy' - North East headteacher joins call for government investment

    Schools are falling into disrepair because of a lack of funds, with classrooms, playgrounds and toilets not being maintained, according to a new report

  • Columbia begins suspending pro-Palestine protesters after ultimatum ignored

    University says move is ‘to ensure safety on campus’ after talks to reach compromise fail

  • Met Police make 2 arrests at pro-Palestine march as 'hundreds of thousands' attend

    A counter pro-Israel protest was held simultaneously which the pro-Palestine march had to pass by

  • Democrats call on Columbia board to end protest encampment or resign

    A group of House Democrats is urging Columbia University’s board of trustees to end the ongoing protest encampment on the campus or step down from their positions. Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) and Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) led the group of 21 colleagues in sending a letter to the board demanding school officials put an end to…

  • Columbia suspends pro-Palestinian protesters

    STORY: Columbia University began suspending pro-Palestinian activists who refused to take down a tent encampment on its New York City campus Monday – after the school declared a stalemate in talks to end the protests. University President Nemat Minouche Shafik said in a statement that days of negotiations between student organizers and academic leaders had failed to persuade demonstrators to dismantle dozens of tents set up to express opposition to Israel’s war in Gaza. The crackdown at Columbia comes amid a wave of Gaza-related protests across American universities.Columbia university spokesman Ben Chang said on Monday that QUOTE:"The encampment has created an unwelcoming environment for many of our Jewish students and faculty and a noisy distraction that interferes with the teaching, learning and preparing for final exams."Earlier, Shafik said Columbia would not divest from finances in Israel, a key demand of the protesters. Instead, she offered to invest in health and education in Gaza and make Columbia's direct investment holdings more transparent.Protesters vowed to keep their encampment on the New York City campus until Columbia meets three demands: divestment, transparency in Columbia’s finances and amnesty for students and faculty disciplined for their part in the protests.Two weeks ago, Shafik faced an outcry from many students, faculty and outside observers for summoning New York City police to dismantle the encampment, resulting in more than 100 arrests.Efforts to remove the encampment, which students set up again within days of the April 18 police action, have triggered dozens of similar protests at schools across the U.S. from California to Boston, as well as countries across the globe.

  • Texas Student Protesters To State Police: 'Who Failed Uvalde?'

    Department of Public Safety troopers came on campus and arrested several students protesting the war in Gaza.

  • Examining the long history of the ‘outside agitator’ narrative

    As university administrators and law enforcement crack down on campus protests over Israel’s war in Gaza, they’re invoking a familiar trope: the “outside agitator.”

  • Growing campus unrest sparks Democratic fears over Chicago convention

    Intense clashes between anti-war protesters and police on college campuses is spreading alarm among Senate Democrats who worry that anger over President Biden’s handling of the war in Gaza could engulf their party’s presidential nominating convention in late August. Images of police arresting more than 100 protesters on Columbia University’s campus, including Rep. Ilhan Omar’s…

  • The standoff at Columbia University over Israel’s war in Gaza

    Columbia’s newspaper editor, Isabella Ramirez, explains why students are protesting on campus and the demands they are making of the administration.

  • Columbia on edge as talks collapse over Gaza protests

    Tensions rose Monday at Columbia University, the epicenter of pro-Palestinian protests across US campuses, with college authorities and student demonstrators in open conflict after negotiations broke down.Columbia University, which said many Jewish students have left its campus, on Monday demanded that the protestors' encampment must be cleared, and added that Columbia would not divest financial holdings linked to Israel -- a key demand of demonstrators.

  • Senators Wary of Sending National Guard to Quell Campus Protests

    (Bloomberg) -- US senators dismissed House Speaker Mike Johnson’s suggestion to send the National Guard to college campuses to quell growing protests against the war in Gaza and US support for Israel.Most Read from BloombergTesla Soars on Tentative China Approval for Driving SystemHSBC CEO Quinn Unexpectedly Steps Down After Almost 5 YearsStocks Trade for 390 Minutes a Day. Increasingly, Only 10 MatterUS Warns ICC Action on Israel Would Hurt Cease-Fire ChancesYen Sparks Intervention Suspicion Af

  • Texas governor says state will ignore ‘illegal’ Biden Title IX revisions

    Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) said Monday his state will not abide by the Biden administration’s sweeping new changes to Title IX, the federal civil rights law prohibiting sex-based discrimination at government-funded schools. In a letter to President Biden, Abbott railed against the revised rules — which provide new protections for transgender students — saying…

  • Dad fears 'tragic event' at school could be caused by 'dangerous' parking

    One concerned parent fears efforts to curb selfish motorists isn't enough

  • Police Officers Gather Outside Columbia University Ahead of Camp Evacuation Deadline

    NYPD officers gathered outside a Columbia University building in anticipation of the camp evacuation deadline on Monday, April 29, footage shows.Footage filmed and posted to X by Liam Quigley shows what he said was “about 30 police officers” lined up along 116th Street in front of Columbia University, where pro-Palestine protesters have been camping out for nearly two weeks. Columbia University gave protesters a deadline of 2 pm local time on Monday to disperse the encampment or risk suspension.After a show of hands, protesters voted to disregard the dispersal order on Monday afternoon, deciding to remain in the encampment instead in solidarity with Gaza. Credit: Liam Quigley via Storyful

  • Leicestershire parent struggling to get place for son in special school says 'it just breaks my heart'

    She said expecting a child with additional needs to travel up to 47 miles one way to school every day was disgraceful in her opinion