Columbia University faces federal complaint after arrest of anti-war protesters

WASHINGTON:

A pro-Palestinian American group has filed a federal civil rights complaint against Columbia University following the mass arrest of anti-war protesters last week after the school called police to clear protest camps, the group said Thursday.

Palestine Legal, an organization that seeks to protect the rights of people in the US to speak on behalf of Palestinians, has urged the US Department of Education to investigate the school’s actions, which it claims discriminate against those who are pro-Palestinian.

Columbia University declined to comment.

Last week, the university tried to shut down campus protests by force when Columbia President Minouche Shafik made the unusual move of opening a new tab inviting the New York City police to enter the campus, drawing the ire of many human rights groups, students and teachers. More than 100 people were arrested, reminiscent of the anti-Vietnam War protests in Columbia more than 50 years ago.

Protests have since continued at Columbia opens new tab and spread to other US campuses opens new tab where hundreds have been arrested in the past week.

Demonstrators were calling for an end to the war in Gaza, in which Israel has killed 34,000 people, according to Gaza’s health ministry, displacing nearly the entire population of Gaza and leading to widespread starvation, opens new tab and allegations of genocide, opens new tab that Israel denies. The war has sparked heated debate, opens new tab In the United States, Israel’s most important ally, opens new tab.

Advocacy groups note rise in anti-Jewish hatred and prejudice opens new tab Arabs and Palestinians opens new tab

Alarming incidents in the U.S. include the October fatal stabbing of a 6-year-old Palestinian American in Illinois, the November shooting of three students, opens new tab of Palestinian descent in Vermont, and the February stabbing of a Palestinian American, opens new tab in Texas.

U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said Thursday that he is following up on reports of allegations of anti-Semitism on college campuses. Earlier this month, a former Cornell University student pleaded guilty, opening a new tab on posting online threats, including death and violence, against Jewish students on campus.