Anti-Israel activists have seized Hamilton Hall at Columbia University, which holds the dean’s office and other important facilities. Palestinian flags now fly from the building, named after Alexander Hamilton, who attended Columbia when it was still known as King’s College, as well as a banner renaming it Hind’s Hall after a Palestinian killed in Gaza.
“Protestors have voiced their intention to remain at Hind’s Hall until Columbia concedes to CUAD’s three demands: divestment, financial transparency, and amnesty,” said the Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD) group. However, it claims the activists are an “autonomous group.”
The university newspaper reports the occupiers are “moving metal gates to barricade the doors, blocking entrances with wooden tables and chairs, and zip-tying doors shut.” They are said to be “dozens” strong and gained access to the building by breaking windows.
The occupation comes as Columbia has begun suspending students involved in establishing a ‘Gaza Solidarity Encampment’ on campus grounds. Hundreds of anti-Israel students have been arrested across the United States, including Rep. Ilhan Omar’s daughter, Isra Hirsi.
The Gaza war has become a political headache for Joe Biden, with some Muslims — key to his voter base in swing states like Michigan — now saying they would rather have Donald Trump back in the White House. The 81-year-old has been forced to insist there are fine people on both sides of the campus crisis to retain support.
Donald Trump has further driven the wedge between Biden and his base, arguing the Democrat “HATES Israel and Hates the Jewish people [but] HATES the Palestinians even more” and “just doesn’t know what to do.”
However, some GOP figures, such as Speaker Mike Johnson, have undermined the former president’s efforts by intervening.
