Gaza Solidarity Shuts Down Columbia University

Amazing. I've harped on the justice of the Palestinian cause for a lot of years, but mostly to deaf ears in the United States.

This is really a sea change.

Statement from Columbia University President Minouche Shafik:

"I am deeply saddened by what is happening on our campus. Our bonds as a community have been severely tested in ways that will take a great deal of time and effort to reaffirm. Students across an array of communities have conveyed fears for their safety and we have announced additional actions we are taking to address security concerns. The decibel of our disagreements has only increased in recent days. These tensions have been exploited and amplified by individuals who are not affiliated with Columbia who have come to campus to pursue their own agendas. We need a reset."

"To deescalate the rancor and give us all a chance to consider next steps, I am announcing that all classes will be held virtually on Monday."

@spruce112358 said
Amazing. I've harped on the justice of the Palestinian cause for a lot of years, but mostly to deaf ears in the United States.

This is really a sea change.

Statement from Columbia University President Minouche Shafik:

"I am deeply saddened by what is happening on our campus. Our bonds as a community have been severely tested in ways that will take a great deal o ...[text shortened]... a chance to consider next steps, I am announcing that all classes will be held virtually on Monday."

sad that liberals are ruining this country

@spruce112358 said
Amazing. I've harped on the justice of the Palestinian cause for a lot of years, but mostly to deaf ears in the United States.

This is really a sea change.

Statement from Columbia University President Minouche Shafik:

"I am deeply saddened by what is happening on our campus. Our bonds as a community have been severely tested in ways that will take a great deal o ...[text shortened]... a chance to consider next steps, I am announcing that all classes will be held virtually on Monday."

It is completely unacceptable for people to take over a university and force it to shut down or go on line for the rest of a semester. Participants should be punished criminally. Students should be expelled and professors who participated should be fired for cause.

@spruce112358 said
Amazing. I've harped on the justice of the Palestinian cause for a lot of years, but mostly to deaf ears in the United States.

This is really a sea change.

Statement from Columbia University President Minouche Shafik:

"I am deeply saddened by what is happening on our campus. Our bonds as a community have been severely tested in ways that will take a great deal o ...[text shortened]... a chance to consider next steps, I am announcing that all classes will be held virtually on Monday."

Chasing after Jews on campus and threatening them, you call that a sea of change?
Seems like liberals are becoming more like Nazis every day.

@cliff-mashburn said
Chasing after Jews on campus and threatening them, you call that a sea of change?
Seems like liberals are becoming more like Nazis every day.

So you are saying that the Palestinian students are liberals.

Islamophobia and anti-semitism is seemingly on the rise. Or both sides are just getting heated in debate and saying / doing things which is probably not who or what they are.

Protests on campusses aren’t anything new. They did it in the 60’s and 70’s too.
Why not? It’s not the end of the world. It’s young people being vocal about the injustices they see.

And, in Israel, there are mass demonstration against the attack on Gaza as well. So, it’s international solidarity.

Not everyone can sit back and watch ethnic cleansing happen and just shrug it off.

@spruce112358 said
Amazing. I've harped on the justice of the Palestinian cause for a lot of years, but mostly to deaf ears in the United States.

This is really a sea change.

Statement from Columbia University President Minouche Shafik:

"I am deeply saddened by what is happening on our campus. Our bonds as a community have been severely tested in ways that will take a great deal o ...[text shortened]... a chance to consider next steps, I am announcing that all classes will be held virtually on Monday."

What Palestinian cause ? Israel owns Palestine. Nobody is moving them. Both Jews and Arabs lived in Palestine and the Arabs who lived there prior to 1948 were offered part of the land of Palestine. They refused, and instead wanted all of it, and said there will be no Jewish Government there. They have repeatedly said this in writing and in their actions. They have repeatedly said they will kill Jews. They have said it and done it over and over. The Jews are still there, whipping their butts. What is their cause? What exactly do they want now? The truth is they want the Jews dead. If you support that cause then you are sick and demented as they are.

@quackquack said
It is completely unacceptable for people to take over a university and force it to shut down or go on line for the rest of a semester. Participants should be punished criminally. Students should be expelled and professors who participated should be fired for cause.

Robert Reich, who is Jewish and a professor, disagrees:

"Can we be clear about a few things? Protesting this slaughter is not expressing antisemitism. It is not engaging in hate speech. It is not endangering Jewish students. It is doing what should be done on a college campus — taking a stand against a perceived wrong, at least provoking discussion and debate.

Education is all about provocation. Without being provoked — stirred, unsettled, goaded — even young minds can remain stuck in old tracks.

Israel’s war on Hamas is horrifying. The atrocities committed by both sides illustrate the capacities of human beings for inhumanity and show the vile consequences of hate. For these reasons, it presents an opportunity for students to reexamine their preconceptions and learn from one another.

If Columbia, Yale, or any other university now roiled by student protests were doing what it should be doing, it would be a hotbed of discussion and debate about the war. Disagreement would be welcome; demonstrations, accepted; argument, invited; differences, examined and probed.

The mission of a university is to coach students how to learn, not tell them what to think. It is to invite debate, not suppress it. Truth is a process and method — more verb than noun.

I love it when my students take issue with something that I or another student has said, starting with “I disagree!” and then explaining why. Disagreeing is not being disagreeable. Disagreement engenders thought and discussion. It challenges students to reconsider their positions and probe more deeply.

Which is why universities should encourage it. Why they should protect unpopular views. Why they should invite and welcome speakers with views that rile many students. To be riled up is to be attentive, open to new ideas.

And why peaceful demonstrations should be encouraged, not shut down. It is never appropriate to call in armed police to arrest peaceful student demonstrators.

Finally, it’s why universities should go out of their way to tolerate expression that may make some people uncomfortable. To tar all offensive speech “hate speech” and ban it removes a central pillar of education. Of course it’s offensive. It is designed to offend."

@shavixmir said
Islamophobia and anti-semitism is seemingly on the rise. Or both sides are just getting heated in debate and saying / doing things which is probably not who or what they are.

Protests on campusses aren’t anything new. They did it in the 60’s and 70’s too.
Why not? It’s not the end of the world. It’s young people being vocal about the injustices they see.

And, in Isra ...[text shortened]... al solidarity.

Not everyone can sit back and watch ethnic cleansing happen and just shrug it off.

who attacked any muslims?

you are a terrorist sympathizer

@spruce112358 said
Robert Reich, who is Jewish and a professor, disagrees:

"Can we be clear about a few things? Protesting this slaughter is not expressing antisemitism. It is not engaging in hate speech. It is not endangering Jewish students. It is doing what should be done on a college campus — taking a stand against a perceived wrong, at least provoking discussion and debate.

Educ ...[text shortened]... d ban it removes a central pillar of education. Of course it’s offensive. It is designed to offend."

terrorist sympathizer

@spruce112358 said
Robert Reich, who is Jewish and a professor, disagrees:

"Can we be clear about a few things? Protesting this slaughter is not expressing antisemitism. It is not engaging in hate speech. It is not endangering Jewish students. It is doing what should be done on a college campus — taking a stand against a perceived wrong, at least provoking discussion and debate.

Educ ...[text shortened]... d ban it removes a central pillar of education. Of course it’s offensive. It is designed to offend."

except for Jan 6th right?

what part of these hamas terrorist holding US citizens hostage are you fools ok with?

@rajk999 said
Israel owns Palestine.

No. Zionists stole Palestine from the people who lived there.

What's interesting is that Americans seem to be finally realizing this fact, starting with college campuses, which is where such movements often start.

The unbelievable aspect of this to me is that the Palestinians have offered on at least 3 separate occasions (PLO; Fatah; Hamas) to stop fighting if the Jews would give back HALF of the stolen land. The Jews have refused every single time. I guess they thought they could keep everything.

@spruce112358 said
No. Zionists stole Palestine from the people who lived there.

What's interesting is that Americans seem to be finally realizing this fact, starting with college campuses, which is where such movements often start.

The unbelievable aspect of this to me is that the Palestinians have offered on at least 3 separate occasions (PLO; Fatah; Hamas) to stop fighting if the ...[text shortened]... olen land. The Jews have refused every single time. I guess they thought they could keep everything.

Well this is a bunch of vague statements typical of college students. By the way American college students have very little credibility.

What exactly is HALF of the 'stolen' land. Is it the UN partition of 1947 that they refused?

Anytime we have two warring parties and one of them has as its prime aim to eliminate and kill the other party then they deserve no mercy. They can go to hell ...

@mott-the-hoople said
sad that liberals are ruining this country

Move to Yazoo Mississippi with Mr Average Joe, I’m pretty sure he has it all under control down there.