Columbia University issued a message to students in the “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” Monday, warning activists that they will be suspended and put on disciplinary probation if they do not leave the occupied lawn by 2 p.m. Monday.
“As you are probably aware, the dialogue between the University and student leaders of the encampment is, regrettably, at an impasse,” the letter reads, according to photos the campus Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) chapter posted on its X account. “The current unauthorized encampment and disruption on Columbia University’s campus is creating an unwelcoming environment for members of our community. External actors have also contributed to this environment, especially around our gates, causing safety concerns — including for our neighbors.”
As National Review reported last week, one of those “external actors” attempted to attack a group of Jewish pro-Israel marchers with a metal pole before being subdued and arrested.
The letter continued, with its authors — presumably some combination of Columbia administrators — reminding the encampment-dwellers that final exams begin this week and that the university’s commencement ceremonies are set to take place in mid-May:
Exams are beginning and thousands of your peers are due to graduate. These are among the most significant aspects of students’ academic programs. Many of this year’s graduates were deprived of a graduation celebration from high school because of the pandemic. For many of their families, this will be the first time anyone in their family has completed college and received a degree.
We urge you to remove the encampment so that we do not deprive your fellow students, their families and friends of this momentous occasion. The University will offer an alternative venue for demonstrations after the exam period and commencement have concluded. If the encampment is not removed, we will need to initiate disciplinary procedures because of a number of violations of university policies. These are policies you agreed to adhere to when you joined our community.
Ultimately, according to the letter, students who voluntarily leave the encampment by the deadline, identify themselves to a Columbia official, and sign a form pledging to behave in accordance with Columbia policies while under disciplinary probation will be allowed to complete the semester. Those who do not “will be suspended pending further investigation.”
The letter clarifies that, during the suspension period before an official investigation, students “are restricted from all Columbia University campuses, facilities, and property,” and their student IDs will not work. They will also be unable to complete the current semester and will no longer be eligible to graduate this May. There is also a note in the letter for those who have already been disciplined by the university or have been charged with discrimination or harassment:
If you are currently involved in a disciplinary process or have already received discipline, you are not eligible for the arrangements described in the form and may not be eligible to complete the semester in good standing. In addition, if you are charged with discrimination or harassment regarding conduct occurring in the encampment, we will continue to address those concerns through our disciplinary processes, and you will no longer be eligible for the arrangements in the form.
The letter comes after Columbia president Minouche Shafik issued a formal communication earlier Monday, writing that, “since Wednesday, a small group of academic leaders has been in constructive dialogue with student organizers to find a path that would result in the dismantling of the encampment and adherence to University policies going forward. Regretfully, we were not able to come to an agreement.”
Shafik explained that the university will not divest from Israel but offered to “make investments in health and education in Gaza” and increase student oversight on “divestment matters.”
“There are important ideas that emerged from this dialogue, and we plan to explore pursuing them in the future,” Shafik wrote.
In its post on X, the Columbia SJP chapter told followers not to sign the document and to “show up at NOON to protect the encampment!”
On a Telegram channel devoted to the Columbia encampment, organizers asked subscribers to come to the occupied lawn and prevent the university from clearing it out.
“Please meet at 1PM at Columbia University (the Sundial) to show Columbia the liberation of Palestine is inevitable and cannot be suspended,” organizers wrote. “LIBRE PALESTINA! DISCLOSE. DIVEST. WE WILL NOT STOP WE WILL NOT REST.”