Last week, Columbia University announced that it would cave to demands by the Trump administration and adopt sweeping measures against pro-Palestinian activity on campus, including new restrictions on protest and the takeover of an academic department from faculty control.
The news sent shock waves across higher education institutions nationwide for what appeared a stunning capitulation to attacks on academic freedom and the independence of the department of Middle Eastern, south Asian and African studies, or Mesaas, which became a scapegoat for what the administration viewed as a pro-Palestinian climate on campus. It was also a remarkable turn of events for a university that had for years been a home for cutting-edge academic discourse on Palestine, beginning with the scholarship of Edward Said, a leading Palestinian intellectual.
It was precisely that legacy that also made Columbia a target of campaigns to censor Palestinian narratives – long before the protests that kicked off after 7 October 2023 drew the attention of conservatives and others who believe American campuses have become too leftwing. In the latest twist in the drama engulfing the university, its interim president, Katrina Armstrong, announced Friday she was stepping down. She is the second president of the university to resign in eight months.
Columbia’s announcement followed the Trump administration’s cancellation of $400m in federal funding, mostly for scientific research, over what the White House said was the university’s failure to protect faculty and students “from antisemitic violence and harassment”. Notably, Columbia’s bending to the government’s demands did not immediately restore the funding, with Trump administration officials indicating they would continue to monitor adherence to the policies they forced on the university.
Columbia’s submission prompted the condemnation of academic freedom advocates nationwide, who warned of more government interference to come…..
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/29/columbia-middle-east-department-trump-edward-said
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