What Columbia Should Have Done Instead of Brutalizing Its Student Protesters
What Columbia Should Have Done Instead of Brutalizing Its Student Protesters
Or UC–Irvine. Neither one resorted to brutalizing its own students.
One example, from just up the Ivy-garlanded I-95, at Brown University, was announced just hours before Shafik again called in the police. Brown’s governing body agreed to vote on a proposal that would divest the school’s endowment of companies affiliated with Israel in a meeting in October. The proposal is based on a 2020 Advisory Committee on Corporation Responsibility in Investment Practices that identified and recommended divestment from “companies that facilitate the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory,” per the Brown Daily Herald.
In exchange, the university’s nonviolent student protesters agreed to vacate their encampment by 5 p.m. that afternoon.
...
Another plausible outcome from California: When a similar encampment went up a few days ago at the University of California, Irvine, it seemed likely that police might sweep the protesters away. Orange County sheriff’s deputies began to appear in riot gear near the protest.
But, rather than traffic in vague allegations of misconduct before hiding behind a belligerent mayor and an aggressive police force, like Shafik, the UC–Irvine administration took a much different tack. “UC Irvine respects the rights of any students to engage in free speech and expression including lawful protest,” the school said in a prepared statement. This, remember, is at a public school, where keeping public police forces away is more challenging than a private enclave like Columbia.
And in fact, Irvine’s mayor did get involved in the action. Not long after that, Mayor Farrah N. Khan issued a resounding statement declaring that she would not tolerate any violation of students’ free speech or right to assembly. “I am asking our law enforcement to stand down. I will not tolerate any violations to our students’ rights to peacefully assemble and protest.” She asked the deputies to leave, and they did.
Cops love to beat up people protesting genocide but they won’t run into a classroom of kids being murdered because they’re too afraid.
Can't help but wonder what would happen if Columbia's students were armed.
I know there's a guy who said something about this once, a long time ago. German fellow with a big beard. Wrote a few economics texts. Gah, it escapes me.
There hasn’t been a school shooting in NYC in decades. Kids know the NYPD is not afraid to shoot them. They’re bullies with badges.
There hasn’t been a school shooting in NYC in decades.
Police increases presence near Manhattan schools in wake of 3 recent shootings
~ Wednesday, March 15, 2023
That suspect, 19-year-old Cheick Coulibaly, faces several charges, including attempted murder, after police say he shot a 17-year-old student multiple times near 68th and Amsterdam. Police say the suspect, believed to be a former classmate of the victim, has three prior arrests, including two arrests for narcotics in 2023.
Apparently not Phili cops.
Divested from Israel. The answer is that they should have divested from Israel.
I'm only vaguely keeping up with the news (I have PTSD relating to war/violence). Can you help me understand how universities are invested in Israel? What would divesting mean?
To over-simplify, making sure that they don't accept donations, grants, etc. from companies or other third-parties that are involved with Israel. The article gives some brief details on how "divest from Israel" is the approach that Brown University actually took here.
In addition to what @JakenVeina@lemm.ee said, a lot of universities have endowments that are invested in stocks, bonds, etc., to provide a baseline level of passive income. Divestment would mean getting rid of any existing investments and barring future investments in Israeli companies and companies that do extensive business with Israel. The result is to lower the access to cash and value of said companies.
Right? STOP EXCUSING GENOCIDE!
I was at the store earlier and overheard someone say: 'Nothing made me smile more than watching our boys in blue wreck those scumbag commies.'
These fascists make me sick.
Fascist Cops be like:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dahiya_doctrine
The Dahiya doctrine, or Dahya doctrine, is a military strategy involving the destruction of civilian infrastructure in order to pressure hostile regimes. It is a type of asymmetric warfare. It endorses the employment of "disproportionate force" (compared to the amount of force used by the enemy) to secure that end. The doctrine was outlined by former Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Chief of General Staff Gadi Eizenkot.
American police leadership has been trained by the IDF for decades.
Did you mean to time travel to the 50s?
I was as surprised as you are. We've got to stop these fascists at all cost.
What'd it say?
People have decided that its easier to appease the right wing media so they go after someone else than stand up to them. But in reality that just shows them that you're an easy target and makes things worse.
this article fails to mention to stop funding genocide.
i think that would have been effective.
Columbia should continue to expel students who breach the code of conduct. They've started with that person who went on the unhinged rant and that's a good start.
College is supposed to prepare you for real life. Real life has consequences.
Protesting is an important part of democracy, what we're seeing clearly goes beyond protesting and is a clear violation of the school rules in many places.
It does seem that the protests that haven't evolved into hate filled homeless camps are having better success negotiating with the various schools they're pushing to change. It's odd that the other camps aren't taking notice and following suit. Talking this out is going to bring much more favorable outcomes than barricading buildings.
Universities and cops that have attacked students like this have historically, pretty much always been on the wrong side of history. Fifty years from now, these protests will probably be seen the same light, students standing up for what is right, with governments and institutions standing up for the grotesque.
I mean....we have witness of this happening in the 40s, with Jews being locked out of American schools. Dunno if you've seen that photo going around but it's pretty striking.
We've got witness of it 30 years later when the students in Iran were on the streets calling for change (change that led to my family having to flee) so we know for sure that students can and definitely will be wrong at times.
The students could be right today, if they are they sure have lined up with some of the worst people this world has to offer, with the regime in Iran, Hamas and Russia lining up to support. I'm fascinated by the Saudis coming to the defense of Israel and American kids protesting against Israel right now. If you told me this would happen twenty years ago I'd have thought you were crazy. Turns out crazy is the flavour of the day.
How can you say " brutalizing" with a straight face? These kids are fucking protesting something that has NOTHING TO DO WITH THEM. They WILL NOT change the issue with Israel and Palestine. It's been an on-going religious war for years. Do they really think Israel leaders are like "hey, some kid at Columbia wants us to stop...pull back!" I mean, it's ridiculous. They are inconveniencing EVERYONE else for a cause that will have no effect on their lives. Campuses have the right to forcefully remove these people. They are giving them more than enough time and warnings to leave...
But it does matter. The US backs Isreals Genocide and is the one supporting there iron dome systems. Affecting public sentiment via protesting would make the US politicians less willing to send money to Isreal. That would influence the outcome.
I hope you really don't believe this. The US will always support Israel, it's literally a matter of national security. There are bigger things at risk by not supporting Israel. Without US support, Israel would literally fall into "survival mode." It would probably wipe out all of Gaza and get rid of the Palestinians just to be on the safe side. If left unprotected, the entire Middle East would attack Israel, possibly created a 3rd World War. If the US wasn't their main support system, they'd turn to someone else, like China or Russia, who would then be their primary source for protection. What the protestors don't understand, is that the US doesn't give foreign aid out of the goodness of our hearts. If it's not good for America we don't do it. Every penny comes with strings attached. If we stop supporting Israel we will no longer have a seat at the table and leverage, among other benefits for the US. This is much more than just the Israel/Palestine conflict.
Reddit needs you, you need to go back.
A religious war? How can anyone still be this ignorant. As others have mentioned, Reddit is <<—- that way
Folks, to sum up this poster: Basically anyone protesting is irrational and stupid.
(I am getting right wingnut republican, maybe even Q anon, vibes)
No, I think protesting is good, I support protesting many things.: Housing crisis, student loans, I'm pro-choice, so I support protesting the right to abortion for women, protest all you want if it's going to help Americans...I just think it's ridiculous to protest something that can't benefit them in any way. Why aren't these kids protesting in masses all over campuses for lower housing? Better health insurance? Lower gas prices? This Israel/Palestine conflict is beyond a bunch of middle class kids holding up signs about religious conflicts in another part of the world.... it's much deeper.
This article is misleading and obviously written by an imbecile. The biggest problem Columbia had is that it IS open to the public.
Edit: there are only 3 threads. You cannot downvote my comments into oblivion.
No.
And yet, yes.
I've never seen a campus that was "closed to the public". The article probably means the UCs are on state-owned, not private, land. But I'm not sure that's true or makes any difference.
The gates close at certain times and specific occasions. The article is clearly meant to be deceptive how it is written.
Get blocked, fash.
Oh nooo... Stop... please