Last December, a previously scheduled trip prevented Columbia University President Nemat Shafik from accepting an “invitation” from the House Education Committee on anti-Semitism. It turned out to be a blessing.
Her colleagues at Harvard and Pennsylvania suffered aggressive interrogation for which they were not prepared and ended up being dismissed by their centers. Lawmakers were not going to let Columbia University, which has hosted numerous protests over the war against Palestine, escape the burning, but Columbia's president has had the advantage of time and the experience of her colleagues.
This Wednesday he began his statements before the committee by comparing the horror of October 7 with 9/11 and recognizing that his institution was not prepared for this new reality. He was right to condemn anti-Semitism in all its facets, including the controversial cry of “From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free and if not, long live the intifada!”, which is chanted in student demonstrations. What the congressmen wanted to know is how it will be punished.
“I promise you, students are getting the message that whoever violates our policies will suffer the consequences,” he said. On the 5th, the University suspended six whom it expelled from the residence hall where they lived with only 24 hours' notice for having participated on March 24 in a panel called 'Resitance 101', which had not been authorized by the institution. . Members of the “Palestinian Prisoners Network” spoke in it, according to the center in defense of Hamas.
Expelled students
Columbia regulations require, since February 19, two days in advance to request permits for demonstrations, which can only be held in designated areas of the campus. In November it suspended two pro-Palestinian student groups, 'Students for Justice in Palestine' and 'Jewish Voices for Peace', for having organized an unauthorized protest stoppage. And since the tense demonstrations on October 12, the administration closes the campus when there are scheduled demonstrations.
However, he could not tell the legislators what the fate of Professor Joseph Massad, author of the Electronic Intifada, would be, who the day after the October 7 attacks published an article describing the enthusiasm that the images had unleashed among Palestinians and Arabs. of “the Palestinian resistance” assaulting Israeli security posts surrounding Gaza.
“We want Columbia to have a broad diversity of viewpoints,” said the president, who has also established a department to investigate allegations of anti-Semitism and is working with lawmakers to implement changes at the center. “It is not the responsibility of the Jewish people to eradicate it, but of all of us,” she said. Florida Republican Rep. Aaron Bean nodded pleased. “He's saying the right things,” he congratulated her.
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