A group of students affiliated with Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD) at Barnard College in New York City have forcefully entered a campus building, according to videos that surfaced on social media Wednesday evening.
The CUAD group, donning keffiyehs, were filmed forcing the doors of Barnard's Milbank Hall open. They staged a sit-in in front of Dean Leslie Grinage's office, calling for the "immediate reversal" of two student's expulsions as well as amnesty for all members, according to the student newspaper, the Columbia Daily Spectator.
I received outreach from Columbia University, reporting that the disruption took place not at Columbia but at its affiliate, Barnard College, which has control over its own governance and security. Barnard College must hold these disruptors accountable. https://t.co/V5eoUbLKXe
— Ritchie Torres (@RitchieTorres) February 27, 2025
Videos showed demonstrators seated in the hallway of the building, chanting for an “intifada revolution.”
According to various posts on social media, the events were promoted days in advance, meaning the university was aware of the events that were set to take place.
The two students were expelled for disrupting an Israel history class with pro-Palestinian protests.
Any university that allows a hostile environment like this, & for violence to run rampant does not deserve our US tax dollars AND should be forced to reveal ALL of its foreign funding sources. You have been warned @Columbia @BarnardCollege my Alma Mater. https://t.co/HqYcO8IDI6
— Ellie Cohanim (@EllieCohanim) February 27, 2025
The incident was initially believed to have taken place at Columbia University, but representatives from the college have clarified the break-in took place at Barnard College, an affiliate university. Barnard is responsible for its own campus security.
Katrina Armstrong, The President of @Columbia, just threw @BarnardCollege under the bus.This is not how leaders act. pic.twitter.com/Z6HsHFADQl
— Shai Davidai (@ShaiDavidai) February 27, 2025
On-campus pro-Palestinian activism
New York US Representative Ritchie Torres posted a video of the incident on X, calling for accountability from the university.
“Is Columbia University going to stand by and allow an aggressive mob to engage in a hostile takeover of its property and create a hostile environment for its Jewish students? A university that fails to hold violent agitators accountable should itself be held accountable,” he wrote.