On Tuesday afternoon, Columbia University Apartheid Divest held a press conference at Morningside Park to share updates about the Hamilton Hall occupation and other campus updates.

At 2:30 pm on Tuesday, Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD) held a press conference at Morningside Park across from the President’s House on Morningside Drive to share updates about ongoing campus protests, including the Hamilton Hall occupation. One student spoke on behalf of CUAD while two other CUAD members, Maryam Alwan, and Cameron Jones, stood nearby.

The speaker opted to remain anonymous for safety purposes but shared that she is a member of CUAD and the Student Workers of Columbia (SWC). She clarified that she did not “represent the students and community members who participated in the autonomous takeover [of Hamilton Hall] last night,” but was there on behalf of CUAD to ensure the press received accurate information, claiming the organization has “seen [Columbia University] repeatedly lie to the press.”

The spokesperson then reshared the CUAD press release from earlier that day. Referring to Hamilton Hall’s renaming to “Hind’s Hall” by occupying protesters, she explained the significance of the renaming as it refers to Hind Rajab, whom the building was renamed for, describing the six-year-old as a “Gazan martyr murdered at the hands of the genocidal Israeli state.” She also referenced the significance of Hamilton Hall as a site of past protests in 1968, 1985, and 1992. 

The occupiers stated that they would continue to occupy Hamilton Hall “until Columbia concedes to CUAD’s three demands which are divestment, financial transparency, and amnesty” in regards to the several students recently suspended from the University.

The spokesperson stressed that the occupiers and protesters “continue[d] to hold themselves to a higher standard than Columbia,” recalling the University’s decision to bring NYPD onto campus as well as recent increased security measures at all entrances and buildings, stating, “This University has repeatedly endangered its students by instituting a police state with military-style checkpoints, repressing and isolating students on campus, [and] calling armed riot cops.” The speaker claimed that the University had used food and housing insecurity as “leverage in negotiations.” 

With the Encampment on West Butler Lawn still ongoing, she reiterated that “CUAD’s Encampment is a peaceful form of protest.” Protest, or “taking back… campus” was “the only and last response to an institution that obeys neither its own so-called rules nor ethical mandates, which is why we began the Gaza Solidarity Encampment,” they stated. The spokesperson then asked “the press and members of the public to hold Columbia accountable for any disproportionate response to students’ actions today and late last night” and thanked those “who put themselves in harm’s way last night” by occupying Hamilton Hall.

“Taking over a building is a very small risk compared to the daily resistance of Palestinians in Gaza,” she claimed, citing “Israel’s planned invasion of Rafah,” where over 1.5 million Palestinians now reside. “We the students cannot sit by as our tuition and our labor is used to support mass murder,” she added. “The least we can do is pressure this University to divest.” 

Then, the speaker shared some updates regarding recent administrative actions. She stated that Columbia spokespeople announced yesterday in a press conference that the University had started issuing interim suspensions for students who were allegedly on the West Lawn Encampment, but, as far as CUAD can tell, suspensions actually began “early this morning.” 

Regarding suspended students, the spokesperson claimed that after yesterday’s 2 pm deadline, written on disciplinary notices handed to students on the West Lawn, the University administration chose who to suspend “completely arbitrarily, and [the administration has] targeted at least three Palestinian students regardless of their presence at the Encampment” after the 2 pm deadline. One suspended student, Mahmoud Khalil, was on CUAD’s negotiation team. “We believe that this is strong evidence that Columbia does not and never has wanted to bargain in good faith,” the speaker stated. 

The speaker also said that she believes that by suspending students, especially student negotiators, Columbia is creating a “state of emergency on campus” to “sabotage negotiations.” The speaker claimed that the University is identifying students for suspension based on “who swiped into Butler Library after 2 pm,” meaning, according to her, that the University is “going  after people for being in a library… right before the exam period.” The speaker claims that this method is one of the “main ways” that the University is identifying students for suspension. Bwog has not been able to confirm these claims. 

The speaker reiterated that the protesters inside Hamilton Hall are “acting in solidarity with CUAD’s three demands.” She further stated her belief that the protesters are additionally “demanding a commitment from Columbia not to send in NYPD or Public Safety” and asking for a “commitment from Columbia for food and water to be brought in.” She mentioned that she did not think negotiations had been resumed, nor that any negotiators had been appointed both in CUAD or on behalf of the University.

The speaker also mentioned that students have not been asked to leave residential buildings, but stated that “[CUAD knows] Columbia has been preparing for mass evictions,” according to information shared with CUAD by faculty members in the University Senate. She reiterated that CUAD “has no information” on whether Columbia plans to implement “mass eviction plans.” The University denied these claims on Saturday after reports emerged from CUAD that Columbia planned for students to be removed from residential housing.

The speaker also referenced reports that the University was “considering inviting riot police onto campus.” It is unclear when these reports were received or from whom.

Following their statement, the CUAD spokesperson took questions from the press.

A reporter from the New York Times inquired as to why negotiations between the University and the Encampment stopped, which the spokesperson explained occurred “because the University revealed it simply wasn’t willing to negotiate in good faith.” She claimed that the University was “misleading in their bargaining position.” She referenced the University’s alleged indication of openness towards financial transparency and claimed that the University “misleadingly described [financial transparency]” while only offering to disclose “direct holdings.” 

Another reporter asked about the number of students suspended or otherwise not allowed on campus after the recent round of suspensions and the suspensions’ effect on ongoing protests. The spokesperson stated that she did not have “exact numbers” at that time but that the “more recent round of suspensions” is believed to have impacted 20 or more students. Additionally, the spokesperson stated that although CUAD and the Hamilton Hall occupiers were “not in close coordination,” CUAD did “stand behind the takeover of Hind’s Hall completely.” 

A reporter asked about a vote of protesters that reportedly took place late Monday evening for the autonomous group to occupy Hamilton and the number and whereabouts of people in the group. The spokesperson stated that no vote had taken place and that she could not provide any updates about the autonomous group or the exact number of individuals participating. 

Referring to the reported suspension of one of CUAD’s negotiators, another member of the press questioned the spokesperson about the possibility of continued negotiations. According to the reporter, the negotiator had previously stated they did not understand why they had been suspended, as they had a previous agreement with the University. The spokesperson stated that “this was in the University’s control,” and demonstrated wariness towards negotiations, referring to Columbia’s “severe overreaction to the peaceful protesters on April 17.” She implied that negotiations may not continue, as the University has “failed to exercise reasonable judgment, and that negotiations are “unable to continue safely.” The spokesperson stated that a “great first step” would be for the University to “provide food” and “basic humanitarian aid” to those in Hamilton Hall, referencing an alleged request by the autonomous group for food and supplies. 

In response to a question about why the University should be obligated to provide food to students inside Hamilton, the spokesperson first iterated that the University is “obligated to provide food to students who pay for a meal plan [at Columbia].” In regards to an alleged request by CUAD to allow food and water to be brought into the campus, she responded that “it’s ultimately a question of what kind of community and obligation Columbia feels it has to its students,” stating that “this is… basic humanitarian aid.” She further stated that CUAD wants a commitment from the University to not prevent food and water from being brought into the campus for student protesters, but she did not confirm that the University had already taken actions to prevent such actions.

The speaker also fielded a question about CUAD’s next steps and how they might impact graduation, responding that CUAD did not have information about plans to disrupt graduation. She added, “It’s really bizarre… to see so much concern over graduation when we’re in the middle of a genocide.” She further iterated that a “peaceful solution” is something “entirely something in [the University’s] control.”

The spokesperson then answered a question about the relationship between students who occupied Hamilton Hall and those previously in the Encampment on the West Lawn, stating that she didn’t have information on the topic. She stated that there were still students inside the Encampment on the West Lawn as well as inside the Encampment on Lewisohn Lawn.

The final question the speaker took was in regard to the amount of support that protesters were receiving from the Harlem community. She started by stating that it was their “obligation as Columbia students to support Harlem and not Harlem’s obligation to support Columbia,” adding that “we are on stolen land from Indigenous people and [on] the land of people who were displaced from Harlem.” She added that “none of this is possible without the support of the community in New York, in Harlem, [and] across the world.”
A Bwog reporter asked CUAD organizer Maryam Alwan how she would respond to students who support divestment but do not support escalation on behalf of CUAD for reasons such as safety concerns or potential disruptions to finals or graduation. Alwan responded that she would “empathize with those students” and that the “militarization of campus has terrified [her].” She added that the “blame lies squarely on the University’s shoulders because they refuse to listen to the student body.” Alwan referenced the 2016 occupation of Low Library in support of her belief that there is a “long history of peaceful occupations that has not led to this unprecedented response.” Alwan closed by stating that she empathizes with these students but believes that “it’s the University’s fault.”

Image via Bwog Staff