Recap:
The summer break offered a brief respite from the nationwide college protests sparked by the Israel-Hamas war. As students prepare to return this fall, most anticipate another chaotic year.
The Context:
· During the spring semester, police arrested over 2,000 people during anti-Israel protests at college campuses across the United States. The protests began at Columbia in response to Israel’s offensive in Gaza following the Hamas massacre in Southern Israel on October 7th. Across campuses nationwide, demonstrators set up tent encampments, occupied buildings, vandalized school property, and intimidated Jewish students [1]. Most students involved in these demonstrations, including the April takeover of Columbia’s Hamilton Hall, remain in good standing [2].
· College administrators faced intense pressure from both sides with Jewish students criticizing universities for not holding protesters accountable and anti-Israel protesters arguing that colleges shouldn’t infringe on freedom of speech. The presidents of Harvard, Columbia, and the University of Pennsylvania resigned from the fallout.
· Universities are implementing new policies for the upcoming school year to ease tensions. Harvard’s draft policy would ban chalk messages on school property and require preapproval for signage. The University of Pennsylvania introduced guidelines that prohibit encampments and overnight demonstrations. At the University of South Florida, canopies, banners, signs, and amplifiers need approval, with no protest activities allowed after 5pm [3].
· While some students voluntarily ended their encampments in exchange for meetings with university officials to discuss divestment from Israel, many intend to build on last year's momentum. Columbia University Apartheid Divest “refuse to flinch in the face of threats, retaliation, and attempts to discredit the unified power of students on a now global stage [4]”. Meanwhile, Hillel International is training Jewish students on how to respond when confronted by protestors [5].
· Universities that have navigated this wave of protests more successfully are those with strict institutional neutrality policies. The University of Chicago and Vanderbilt have cited these policies as reasons for not negotiating with anti-Israel protestors during the spring semester [6]. However, students still can cause significant disruptions if their demands are not met. At the University of Michigan, the new student government vowed to withhold $1.3 million in funding from all student groups unless the university agrees to divest from Israel, a move that could significantly affect any student organization reliant on this funding and create a spillover effect on Jewish students [7].
Conversation Points:
· What role should universities play in political conflicts?
· How should universities navigate protecting free speech and preventing harassment?
· How can universities support Jewish students who feel threatened by these protests?
Notes:
1. More than 2,100 people arrested at anti-Israel campus protests across the US, Times of Israel, May 3rd, 2024
2. Protesters vow to return to Columbia, new leadership pushes for calm, Susan Svrluga, Washington Post, August 25th, 2024
3. US colleges revise rules as campuses brace for more anti-Israel chaos, Christina Coulter, Fox News, August 22, 2024
4. “Protesters vow to return to Columbia, new leadership pushes for calm, Susan Svrluga, Washington Post, August 25th 2024
5. Kathy Hochul to meet with NY college presidents as officials try to avoid more anti-Israel campus chaos, Carl Campanile, New York Post, August 25th, 2024
6. Institutional neutrality key to stymying aggressive anti-Israel campus protests: report, The College Fix, August 27, 2024
7. U of Michigan student government vows to withhold funds from campus groups over BDS spat, Times of Israel, August 29th, 2024
Comments