Columbia should be proud of its students protesting against Israel: Academics
Scientists and Academics associated with universities and institutions spread across the world while condemning the use of force against student activists said the Columbia University should actually be proud of its students joining the protest against Israeli war in Gaza.
Mumbai: Scientists and Academics associated with universities and institutions spread across the world while condemning the use of force against student activists said the Columbia University should actually be proud of its students joining the protest against Israeli war in Gaza.
“Columbia should be proud of those members of its community who joined these protests. The protests at Columbia and other campuses are precisely empathetic, informed and courageous actions that are required at the time of a crisis”, around 1000 scientists and academics associated with as many universities of the world wrote in an open letter addressed to Columbia University President Nemat Shafik.
The scientists and academics in their letter to the Columbia University President also commended the students participating in the protest against the Zionist’s war in Gaza and West Bank, and the American administration’s support to Israel.
At the same time, the scientists and academics accused the U.S. media of failing to accurately highlight the impact of the Israeli brutal war on the ordinary Palestinians.
“The U.S. media has failed to accurately portray the horrific impact of the war on ordinary Palestinians, and this has allowed the U.S. government to continue its indefensible policies”, they said.
“We applaud the protesters at Columbia and elsewhere in the United States for looking past this smokescreen. We commend their willingness to stand up to their own government in defense of Palestinian human rights and demand divestment from the military industrial complex in Israel. We are impressed by their efforts to build an inclusive coalition to peacefully advocate for these demands”, the academics and scientist said while urging the Columbia University President to feel proud of the students.
“Even if Columbia’s administration disagreed with the protesters, it was your responsibility to protect their rights to express their views. We understand that the protests were disruptive; however, this is the nature of protests, especially those concerning such serious issues”, they said.
The academics and scientists who signed the letter included Tarek Anous, Queen Mary University of London, Philip Argyres, University of Cincinnati, Cyril Closset, University of Birmingham, Anne-Christine Davis, Cambridge University, Casey Harwood, University of Iowa, Seyda Ipek, Carleton University, Nabil Iqbal, Durham University, Madalena Lemos, Durham University, Mario Martone, King’s College London, Brian Nord, University of Chicago, Suvrat Raju, International Centre for Theoretical Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Nausheen R. Shah, Wayne State University, Brian Shuve, Harvey Mudd College, Deema Totah, University of Iowa, Thomas Van Riet, Leuven University, Tien-Tien Yu, University of Oregon and others.
While condemning the Columbia President’s decision to call Police and suspend students the academics and scientists urged the university administration to revoke these decisions.
“Your actions have weakened democratic norms within the university and undermined the university’s standing in the international academic community. We urge you to immediately revoke any disciplinary actions taken against the protesters and to take immediate steps to ensure that charges are dropped against those who were arrested”, they said.
University students’ protest spread to Europe, Australia and Canada
Meanwhile, the students’ protest against Israel and the American administration’s funding of the Zionist war in the occupied Palestinian territories that engulfed the university campuses across the United States after the use of force against the Columbia students, have now spread to Europe, Canada, Australia and other cities.
On the lines of the universities in the United States, student activists also set-up encampment on the McGill's downtown campus in Canada.
Protesters are demanding McGill and Concordia universities to divest from funds implicated in the Zionist state as well as [cut] ties with Zionist academic institutions, according to a statement sent to CBC News by Zaynab Ali, a McGill student participating in the protest.
BREAKING:
— sarah (@sahouraxo) April 27, 2024
Happening now in Montreal, Quebec, Canada!
McGill University students join the global uprising for a free Palestine.
The university encampment protests against Israel’s genocide are spreading like wildfire worldwide.
pic.twitter.com/vdlqlnbmTV
Pro-Palestine solidarity rallies and encampment are also seen in Sydney University and other Australian university campuses. A group of children also joined the anti-Israel protest in Sydney University. They were chanting slogans calling for intifada (uprising) at what the organisers described as a “kids excursion” to the pro-Palestine encampment at the University of Sydney.
Protests showing solidarity with Palestinians and demanding action over Israel's bombardment of Gaza also spread to United Kingdom, France and Germany.
At University College London (UCL) Friday, dozens of students rallied with banners calling it "complicit in genocide" and demanding it "divest from death."
The UCL students wearing keffiyehs and carrying Palestinian flags also chanted slogans "no more money for Israel's crimes" and "London students, it's our time – shut it down for Palestine”.
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