Recently, in New York City, Columbia University and its surrounding areas have seen a surge in radical anti-Israel protests that have fueled various acts of violence and anti-Semitic rhetoric. Protesters have resorted to actions such as attacking pro-Israel activists and Jewish students, spitting at a Jewish student, and stealing Israeli flags.
These radical protesters draw inspiration from the 1968 protests at Columbia University, which eventually evolved into the United States’ most deadly left-wing terrorist organization, the “Weathermen,” also known as the “Weather Underground.”
The Weathermen organization is not the only terrorist group that these protesters are attempting to emulate. As noted by prominent commentator Bari Weiss, pro-Palestinian activists at Columbia University openly celebrate Hamas and engage in intimidation tactics against identifiable Jewish students in their vicinity.
The level of violence has been so intense that on April 21, a rabbi associated with Columbia urged Jewish students to stay home until campus order is restored. Columbia’s on-campus Jewish organization, Hillel, has called on both the university and the city government to ensure student safety, including on public streets surrounding the campus that students must use to navigate between classrooms, dorms, and off-campus residences.
“Columbia University and New York City must take more measures to protect student safety,” said Hillel in a statement. “We urge university administrators to take immediate action to restore calm on campus. The city government must ensure that students can walk on Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue without fear of harassment.”
The university’s response allowing students to switch to online classes now is a result of their own making. It is clear that the root cause lies in the university’s failure to uphold truth and education as paramount, instead veering towards relativism and far-left ideology, denying or avoiding historical anti-Semitism. This is an issue that the university should address immediately.
Of course, the blame doesn’t solely fall on the university. Protesters are prohibited from consuming alcohol and drugs on the campgrounds. Following violent incidents, they finally issued a statement prioritizing “everyone’s safety,” including “not engaging with counter-protesters or unnecessarily escalating the situation.” However, there is scarce evidence that they are actively committed to non-violence. Without more non-violence training for participants, students should be aware that large-scale protests on divisive issues may not be the best path forward. Encouraging untrained individuals to participate in protests is illogical.
Organizers of the protests should publicly acknowledge that they look up to civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. as their model, rather than prominently broadcasting messages of violence in the forefront of their large march queues. Given the frequent large-scale anti-Semitic violence events, releasing inciting remarks in this context undoubtedly undermines the push for a ceasefire and will ultimately dilute the righteous voices calling for an end to violence.
Outside the university gates, a large group of protesters held up bold “revolution” signs, marching led by at least a hundred participants. Many may have come from other protest groups and universities, including New York University (NYU) and the City University of New York (CUNY).
One of the most prominent participants in the Columbia University protests displayed a communist hammer and sickle symbol prominently on her Twitter account. With over 180,000 Twitter followers, she referred to her inspiration as coming from the events of 1968. Back then, activists at Columbia University were socialist radicals trained in Cuba, occupying buildings that led to 700 arrests and 200 injuries. Acts of violence also occurred at the 1969 Democratic National Convention, and in the 1970s, the Weathermen organization launched communist terrorism, attempting to overthrow the U.S. government through violence such as bombings, street brawls, and assaults on teachers and professors.
On April 18, over a hundred people were arrested at Columbia University, with around 50 external protesters chanting “Long live the intifada,” where “intifada” translates directly to “shaking off” or “uprising,” primarily used in the context of Palestinian terrorism. Another common chant was “from the river to the sea,” signaling to end Israel as a Jewish state, essentially advocating for the use of violence to drive Jews out of their homeland.
Some protesters exhibited even more extreme behavior. One demonstrator shouted, “We are Hamas,” while another yelled, “Long live Hamas,” a scene captured on camera. Reportedly, one protester threatened Jewish students on campus, saying they could “repeat the civilian massacre of October 7, 2023, ten thousand times.”
Given the violence-laden nature of these protests and the open admiration for the radicalism of 1968, universities and law enforcement agencies should be concerned about the potential influx of Middle Eastern violence taking on new forms of domestic terrorism in the United States. In American protest movements that use such rhetoric, a small fraction of participants may consider translating words into actions through small-scale violence, property damage, or even more extreme means, potentially accounting for up to 10% of the participants.
The disregard for non-violent repercussions has already manifested: violent clashes between protesters and counter-protesters. In one off-campus interaction, an anti-Hamas protester mocked pro-Palestinian protesters, saying they were oblivious to what was happening in the Middle East. One protester, wearing a keffiyeh, a Palestinian scarf associated with supporting the Palestinian cause, appeared to aggressively shove the anti-Hamas individual, causing him to bleed profusely. The injured party also accused another man wearing a keffiyeh of assaulting him. In the same video, a Jewish student was derogatorily referred to as a “white devil,” and another student was mocked as a “white boy.” While these individuals seemed to seek constructive dialogue, the protesters showed little inclination to engage in meaningful communication.
Organizers of the protest activities should condemn this radical, stubborn racism and violent behavior. However, they have not strongly denounced these actions, failed to adhere to reasonable campus rules, and neglected to create opportunities for all parties to express their viewpoints, leading to a situation where the entire protest spiraled out of control, prompting law enforcement to intervene and apprehend extremists. The violations under the democratic system and the risks of “speech equivalent to harassment and discrimination” prompted Columbia University President Nemat “Minouche” Shafik to take the necessary steps to prevent further escalation of violence.
It is imperative to make all students understand that universities are places for learning and critical thinking, not for aggression, racism, and violence. Many of the protesters at Columbia University have already displayed behaviors akin to terrorists in their words and actions. Before they translate speech into action, we must correct their thinking through better education and promptly end this cycle of violence.