Stefanik calls for Columbia pres. to resign after Jewish professor locked out, students terrorized

By Samantha Kamman, Christian Post Reporter Tuesday, April 23, 2024

Columbia University students participate in an ongoing pro-Palestinian encampment on their campus with a pro-Israel student holding an Israeli flag on April 23, 2024, in New York City. In a growing number of college campuses throughout the country, student protesters are setting up tent encampments on school grounds to call for a ceasefire in Gaza and for their schools to divest from Israeli companies. | Stephanie Keith/Getty Images

With Jewish students at Columbia University being advised to remain home for their safety, Congresswoman Elise Stefanik led a letter calling on the university’s president, Minouche Shafik, to resign for failing to dismantle an anti-Israel encampment on campus and stop antisemitic harassment.

In a Monday letter to Shafik, Stefanik and other congressional members blamed the situation at Columbia on the university president’s policies and “misguided decisions.” The New York Republican representative and her colleagues stated that, based on recent events, the lawmakers “have no confidence” in Shafik’s “leadership of this once esteemed institution.”

Last week, Shafik testified before the House Committee on Education and the Workforce about how the university addresses Jewish hatred and disciplines faculty members who have made antisemitic remarks. As the university president testified on Capitol Hill, Columbia University students set up a “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” last Wednesday morning.

The delegation behind the letter took issue with the fact that it took two days before the New York Police Department was authorized to clear the encampment. The police arrested over 100 people, including the daughter of Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., after they refused to leave the encampment.

Citing media reports about the situation at Columbia, the letter noted that, despite the arrests, students have resettled the encampment, and the school hasn't asked the NYPD to return.

“This unsanctioned mob of students and agitators being permitted to target Jewish students has led to several documented incidents of despicable antisemitic harassment and calls for violence and terrorism since your testimony about enforcing the consequences,” the letter stated.

According to the Columbia Spectator, Rabbi Elie Buechler, director of the campus’ Orthodox Union-Jewish Learning Initiative, advised 290 students in a group chat to avoid the university.

“The events of the past few days, especially last night, have made it clear that Columbia University’s Public Safety and the NYPD cannot guarantee Jewish students’ safety in the face of extreme antisemitism and anarchy,” the rabbi wrote.

“It deeply pains me to say that I would strongly recommend you return home as soon as possible and remain home until the reality in and around campus has dramatically improved,” Buechler added. “It is not our job as Jews to ensure our own safety on campus.”

A group of 10 pro-Israel counter-protestors stood at the Sundial on campus waving Israeli and U.S. flags. The group also played Jewish music and the U.S. national anthem through a loudspeaker. One of the anti-Israel demonstrators stood in front of the Sundial with a sign that read, “Al-Qasam’s Next Targets.”

On Monday, journalist Neria Kraus shared a video on X that was filmed by an undergraduate student. According to Kraus, the person who filmed it said she and the Jewish students hadn't said anything to the demonstrators, but when they saw one of the filmmaker’s friends was wearing a Star of David necklace, the protestors began threatening them.

In the video, the anti-Israel protestors can be heard shouting, “We have Zionists who have entered the camp.” Multiple demonstrators then repeated the calls from one of the protest leaders to form a “human chain” and walk forward to “push them out of the camp.”

Columbia University did not immediately respond to The Christian Post’s request for comment.

Stefanik blamed the ongoing situation at Columbia on Shafik’s “continued lax enforcement of policy and clear double standards.”

“Your failure to enforce the rules on campus has created an environment in which students and outside agitators know they are able to operate with impunity and without any accountability,” the letter stated. “While the rot is systemic, the responsibility rests squarely on your shoulders. It is time for Columbia University to turn the page on this shameful chapter. This can only be done through the restoration of order and your prompt resignation.”

The university also denied entry to Shai Davidai, an Israeli-American business professor, from entering the area where the anti-Israel protestors had set up the encampment. In a Monday X post, the professor had advertised a “peaceful sit in” at the area occupied by the anti-Israel demonstrators. Columbia University responded by deactivating Davidai’s ID card.

In an email obtained this week by The National Review, Columbia's COO Cas Holloway told the professor that to “maintain the safety of the Columbia community,” Davidai could not be permitted to enter the West Lawn.

Following the incident, Davidai wrote on X that the last time he had heard of a university denying one of its professors access to campus was in Nazi Germany.

Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman