The suspension follows an incident where both SJP and JVP allegedly organized an unauthorized event without heeding university warnings.
The suspension follows an incident where both SJP and JVP allegedly organized an unauthorized event without heeding university warnings.
Columbia University has suspended the groups Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace until the end of the fall semester. The decision comes after both groups allegedly organized an unauthorized event, ignoring university warnings and creating an environment of intimidation and threatening rhetoric.
The event reportedly created an atmosphere of threatening rhetoric and intimidation, leading to policy breaches that prompted the university to take disciplinary action, the Erudera reported.
According to Senior Executive Vice President Gerald Rosberg, the suspension results from repeated violations of university policies related to campus events.
“This decision was made after the two groups repeatedly violated university policies related to holding campus events, culminating in an unauthorized event Thursday afternoon that proceeded despite warnings and included threatening rhetoric and intimidation,” he said.
As a consequence of the suspension, both student groups will lose their privileges to host campus events and will no longer receive university funding.
“Lifting the suspension will be contingent on the two groups demonstrating a commitment to compliance with university policies and engaging in consultations at a group leadership level with university officials,” he added.
While Columbia University reaffirmed its commitment to providing space for student groups to engage in debates, advocacy, and protests, it also underscored that this commitment relies on community members complying with rules and cooperating with university administrators to maintain the safety of everyone on campus.
The American Civil Liberties Union had earlier urged US colleges and universities to uphold free speech and resist pressure to investigate or disband student organizations supporting Palestinian rights amid the Israel-Hamas conflict.
The organization warned against politically motivated efforts to regulate speech, noting threats by some Republican politicians to withhold federal funds from institutions involved in Palestinian rights activism.
Florida’s State University System is reportedly pushing to dissolve Students for Justice in Palestine chapters, citing alleged ties to “terrorist groups.”
Pro-Israel organizations have called for investigations, but the ACLU rejects such calls, citing the importance of protecting free speech rights for student groups.
As of November 6, the Israeli army has cut off northern Gaza and launched airstrikes in preparation for ground battles with Hamas militants, the Associated Press reported. The Palestinian death toll has now exceeded 10,000, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza, which does not differentiate between fighters and civilians.
On the Israeli side, around 1,400 lives have been lost, mainly civilians, in the October 7 incursion by Hamas that initiated the conflict.
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