Columbia has more protests despite arrests

NEW YORK — Defiant students at Columbia University continued Friday to protest the war in Gaza, a day after university President Minouche Shafik tapped the NYPD to clear a campus encampment and arrest more than 100 demonstrators.

Dozens of students took over another campus lawn with blankets and Palestinian flags, waking up before the sun rose and calling on their classmates to join them with warm clothes and blankets, social media posts from overnight show.

A large sign from the original series of tents, pitched earlier this week, continued to advertise the “Gaza Solidarity Encampment.” One undergraduate student told the New York Daily News that the more university administrators try to “silence us,” the more she and her classmates will fight back.

“Seriously, that’s why we’re here,” she said. “Because you can’t tell us to shut up.”

The encampment went up shortly before Shafik defended before Congress her handling of rising campus antisemitism amid the Israel-Hamas war.

Pro-Palestinian protesters on the perimeter of Columbia continued to show support for Columbia students. Campus gates were locked for the fifth day in a row.

Campus chapters of Students for Justice in Palestine throughout the country shared photos of their own tent demonstrations on social media to back Columbia.

“While the encampment has been dismantled, our community has had protest activity on campus since October, and we expect that activity to continue,” a university spokesperson said.

“We have rules regarding the time, place, and manner that apply to protest activity and we will continue to enforce those. We remain in regular contact with our students and student groups and are committed to ensuring the core functions of the University continue.”