On Monday, three students filed a lawsuit against Columbia, claiming the University violated its own policies when disciplining students involved in protests and the encampment during the spring of 2024. 

On Monday, three Columbia students filed a lawsuit against the University regarding their suspensions following participation in pro-Palestine protests and the encampment during the spring of 2024. The students alleged that the University “targeted” them for their views, “violat[ing] New York’s landlord tenant laws when it evicted [them] from university housing,” according to a DropSite News report. 

School of Social Work students Aidan Parisi and Brandon Murphy were both suspended for one year, while School of International and Public Affairs student Catherine Curran-Groome was suspended for two years. All three had been set to graduate in the spring of 2025 prior to their suspensions. 

“They singled out a few of us to try to make an example out of us,” Curran-Groome said to DropSite News, referencing other students who faced interim suspensions that were ultimately lifted. According to Curran-Groome, the three students whose suspensions were upheld did not deserve the “targeting and the discrimination” they experienced. 

James Carlson, the attorney representing the students, described how the University “threw out its rule book” to “punish and silence” the plaintiffs’ views and actions as they engaged in pro-Palestine protests throughout the spring. The University also “turn[ed] a blind eye” to alleged abuse from students and faculty while also bypassing standard procedures for taking disciplinary action. “​​This is a case where Columbia University basically went far out of its way to unjustly punish and silence these students,” he said to DropSite News.

Prior to the encampment, all three students were heavily involved with activism on campus. Curran-Groome served as president of the student organization the Palestine Working Group. An event she was organizing in March, Resistance 101, was the source of her and Parisi’s first interim suspensions. The event would feature speakers covering the history of occupation and colonialism and strategies to combat them. Curran-Groome initially intended to hold the event on campus but was told by the University that she would need permission to do so. The event was ultimately held off campus but still garnered “scrutiny and criticism” from various third parties, including the House Committee on Education and Workforce. 

In response to backlash, Public Safety announced that the event was “unsanctioned and unapproved.” University administration allegedly sent emails to meet with private investigators shortly after, with a follow-up email stating that Curran-Groome and Parisi had been suspended in the interim. 

The lawsuit states that Columbia violated its standard procedures by processing the students through the Center for Student Success and Intervention (CSSI) instead of the University Judicial Board (UJB). According to the suit, the CSSI does not allow students the right to an attorney or witnesses during disciplinary hearings and proceedings. The University Senate voiced concerns with CSSI handling issues of student conduct and a congressional report on antisemitism on college campuses stated that “moving the cases to the UJB would almost certainly result in significantly weaker punishments than CSSI.” 

The complaint also notes the University only allowed students 24 hours to vacate their residences after their suspensions went into effect, violating New York state’s 30-day eviction notice law. After the establishment of the encampment on Butler Lawns, the three students received another interim suspension. According to Carlson, the University “used that suspension to then levy additional disciplinary actions, alleging that the plaintiffs had violated that first illegitimate interim suspension by then returning to campus.”

The plaintiffs allege that being banned from campus precluded them from accessing student healthcare services and financial aid. The students expressed frustration over the settlement of another lawsuit filed against the University. After students used chemical spray at a protest, causing the hospitalization of several individuals, one claimed that the subsequent disciplinary proceedings were biased. The suit was ultimately settled, with Columbia awarding the student $395,000. 

The suit comes at a time when discourse around antisemitism on college campuses is a central focus among legislators. On Monday, the Trump administration announced investigations into five universities, including Columbia, regarding allegations of antisemitism. “This administration will not tolerate continued institutional indifference to the wellbeing of Jewish students on American campuses,” said Craig Trainor, the acting assistant secretary of the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights. Trump has also made statements advocating for the cancellation of visas for international students involved in pro-Palestine protests.

The administration’s magnifying glass on the University’s handling of antisemitism has left those facing disciplinary action for participation in pro-Palestinian events feeling like scapegoats. In their interview with DropSite News, Parisi claimed that the three plaintiffs had become “political tools” for the University to “show to their donors,…to Congress” as proof of combating antisemitism.

As the lawsuit’s proceedings parallel federal investigations into antisemitism on college campuses, the plaintiffs hope to hold the University accountable for their alleged targeting of students and departure from standard policy. 

News Editor Khushi Chhaya contributed to this piece.

Pro-Palestinian Gathering via Khushi Chhaya