New York University students have set up an anti-Israel tent camp as a form of protest against Israel and the war in the Gaza Strip. The protesters gathered outside NYU’s Stern School of Business in Manhattan, waving Palestinian flags, and displaying signs calling for an end to the campaign across the Palestinian enclave. Some signs read, “Honor the Martyrs of Palestine” and “We Are All SJP,” in reference to the Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine organization. The students are part of the NYU Palestine Solidarity Coalition and are demanding that the university disclose and divest its finances from weapons manufacturers and companies with an interest in Israel.
The protesters are also calling on NYU to shut down its campus in Tel Aviv, which allows students to study politics, history, and religion in Israel. They are demanding that NYPD cops, whom they allege are trained by the Israeli military, be removed from campus. Additionally, they are seeking full amnesty for students and faculty members who have been penalized for their activism. Last October, first-year student Hafiza Khalique was suspended after being identified in a viral video tearing down posters of Israeli hostages captured during a massacre in southern Israel. NYU has not yet responded to the protesters’ demands.
In solidarity with the ongoing protest at Columbia University, students at NYU and the New School in Manhattan have also launched demonstrations. The New School students set up a “Liberty Zone” in the university lobby, while NYU students established their encampment outside the business school. The protest at Columbia was recently raided by NYPD officers in riot gear, resulting in the arrest of over 100 protesters. However, the students promptly rebuilt the encampment less than 24 hours later. The demonstrations are part of a growing movement of anti-Israel protests on college campuses in New York City.
The cost of attending NYU’s business school, named after Jewish billionaire Leonard N. Stern, is over $60,000 per year, plus an additional $18,000 for housing. The protests at NYU and other universities in Manhattan are calling for divestment from Israel and an end to the Israeli occupation in Palestine. The students involved in the demonstrations are united in their demand for financial transparency from the university and the removal of any ties that support the Israeli military. The protest at NYU reflects a larger trend of student activism against Israel and in support of Palestinian rights on college campuses in New York City.
The protests at NYU and other universities in Manhattan highlight the students’ dedication to advocating for Palestinian rights and against the Israeli occupation. The demands made by the protesters focus on financial transparency, divestment from companies with ties to Israel, and the removal of NYPD officers from campus. The students at NYU are taking inspiration from the ongoing protests at Columbia University and are determined to continue their demonstration until their demands are met. The anti-Israel tent camp at NYU serves as a physical representation of the students’ commitment to advocating for justice and equality for the Palestinian people.
