The largest mobilization since the beginning of the Gaza war shakes US universities. international

This is Gaza’s 15-M, Occupy Wall Street – the protest movement that screamed against capitalism in 2011 – with Kufiyas, The largest mobilization is taking place on US campuses since the war in Gaza broke out, including protest camps from east to west of the country, a major change from the demonstrations that have already been visiting universities since October. With Columbia (New York) at the center, campers with 100% pro-Palestinian affiliation have contributed to re-energize a previously dormant debate on anti-Semitism, leading to the resignation of rectors late last year Was. Harvard and Pennsylvania. Jewish students and teachers say they feel threatened and at risk of open confrontation.

Encampments on several campuses in the country have been dispersed by police with multiple arrests – the latest, on Monday night, at the public university of New York – and have prompted rectors to adopt extraordinary measures, such as the deployment of police at entrances and exits. Multiple security guards, demarcated by fence; Closing facilities to strangers – students can only enter after scanning their IDs – and adopting remote classes until the end of the semester to avoid overcrowding on campus. This is the decision taken by Columbia, where this Tuesday hundreds of students camped in dozens of tents set up in a circle on a field in the center.

Most of them are hidden behind masks, despite the fact that it is an open-air protest, or under Palestinian headscarves, they do yoga, play music, play cards or, for the most part, read their Let’s finish class work: The last day of school is December 29th. april. They have taken over the first camp that was dispersed by the police last week, with a hundred arrests. The camp is as well organized as 15-M or the camp for people angry over the Greek crisis: there are food services, a medical care tent; Generator; A program of activities, with board games or yoga exercises, and a large sign that sets out the rules, the first of which is a commitment to continue camping “in solidarity with the Palestinian people” and not to leave even a millimeter of space. On Monday night, Jewish students camped out celebrated traditional SederThe dinner that marks the beginning of the Jewish Passover.

With the support of many teachers, protesters are now demanding not only a ceasefire in Gaza (they have been doing so since the war began), but also the re-entry of students arrested last week , some of whom—numbers—were expelled from the campus, and even from the university. take away Of companies related to Israel. For their part, Jewish students claim that criticism of Israel for its strikes against Gaza has given rise to radical anti-Semitism and made them feel unsafe. There is already a clear divide among them, while important donors, mostly Jewish, have announced that they plan to withdraw funds from departments and centers unless corrective measures are taken. This case pertains to the owner of the New England Patriots football team. and Columbia alumnus Robert Kraft, who runs a center for Jewish students at that university.

The sudden intensity with which the pro-Palestine protests have gained has not surprised the rectors: they are a testament to the dozens of marches and demonstrations that pass through New York almost daily, which are also supported by large numbers of progressive Jews. But, unlike the last quarter of 2023, this time the reaction from university officials has been blunt, allowing police to take action: people arrested at Columbia last week were taken out, bound with plastic ties and taken away by agents Went.

The growing mobilization against the Gaza war and for a ceasefire has translated into additional pressure for President Joe Biden, who in recent weeks has focused his efforts on Israel as well as Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to ease humanitarian suffering. Initial strong support has been revised. In the Strip―, after receiving thousands of penal votes in the primaries, especially from progressive Democratic voters of Arab origin.

The precarious balance between freedom of expression and safety and inclusivity on campuses has practically collapsed. From coast to coast in the United States, principals have spent the past six months struggling to draw a clear line, but failing to act decisively or laxly has cost them the attention of parents, politicians, distinguished students, and Ultimately, it lost support. Students on both sides: either to tolerate the protests, as Columbia initially did, or to ask the police to disperse the first encampment last week. Members of Congress visited campuses this Monday to take an interest in maintaining order, as the anti-Semitism debate on campuses is the new front in the cultural and political wars in the United States.

The flame of Colombia has been easily caught. In Michigan, Berkeley, Minnesota, the public universities of New York, or MIT, whose rector was also seriously questioned in congressional hearings, brought the prestigious Ivy League universities into question for their indifference in condemning anti-Semitism. Had made it stand. In Yale, police detained fifty protesters on Monday, charging them with vandalism and trespassing. The protests escalated further after the police action and students blocked an intersection. There were also several arrests at the public University of New York, while the rector’s office issued a statement according to which at a rally in front of the business faculty in the center of the city, he said people not associated with the university participated, “chanted intimidating slogans. and several anti-Semitic incidents were recorded.”

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