Pro-Palestinian protesters outside the gates of Columbia University Nov. 15. Photo by Camillo Barone

By Camillo Barone November 15, 2023

A week after Columbia University suspended Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace, about 200 pro-Palestinian protesters filled the streets outside the university for an authorized rally.

For more than two hours on Wednesday afternoon, traffic was diverted around the protest, which was centered on Broadway outside the university’s landmark gates and stretched from 115th to 116th streets. The New York Police Department sent at least 20 officers to the scene and confirmed that protesters had permission from the city to gather.

Most in the crowd appeared to be Columbia students and alumni. They protested Israel’s offensive in Gaza but also the university’s decision to suspend the two pro-Palestinian groups. Several demonstrators held signs that read “Minouche, shame on you!” referring to Minouche Shafik, who was installed as Columbia’s president last month.

A banner near the rally’s center, near its main speakers, read: “By any means necessary,” alongside a map of Israel painted with the colors of the Palestinian flag. When asked if the slogan included Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attack in Israel, those who held the sign refused to answer. No other protesters agreed to be interviewed. Most wore kaffiyehs, scarves and sunglasses that obscured their faces.

They chanted “Globalize the Intifada,” “Judaism is a Yes, Zionism is a No, State of Israel must go,” and “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”

Columbia, on New York’s Upper West Side, has seen some of the most raucous protests since Hamas’ attack sparked Israel’s military action in Gaza. It suspended SJP and JVP last week until the end of the fall term because they “repeatedly violated University policies related to holding campus events,” according to a statement from Vice President Gerald Rosberg. He referred to a protest on campus last Thursday that “included threatening rhetoric and intimidation.”

Several other colleges have taken action against chapters of SJP, whose national umbrella celebrated the Oct. 7 attack. It has been banned at Florida’s public universities and Brandeis University. George Washington University temporarily suspended its chapter this week over anti-Israel messaging projected onto a campus library.

At Columbia on Wednesday the university closed its gates and denied access to anyone without a valid  Columbia ID during the rally. On most days the campus is open to anyone. No counterprotests or clashes were reported.

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