Columbia University’s embattled president, Nemat Minouche Shafik, has been a target of critics who accused her of going too soft on anti-Israel radicals who ran amok on her campus until she caved and called police for help after the agitators escalated the chaos by taking over an academic building on Tuesday.
Now she’s also facing a potential mutiny from a faculty group that alleges the police response went too far.
Although university leaders repeatedly pushed back the “deadline” for the agitators to disperse, Shafik finally asked the New York City Police Department (NYPD) to clear a group of them out this week after a mob smashed its way into the Hamilton Hall building on campus and barricaded the doors and windows, confronting maintenance workers and waiving a Palestinian flag from the roof.
“President Shafik is reaping what she and other senior administrators have sown,” said William A. Jacobson, Cornell University law professor and founder of the Equal Protection Project. “For decades, but particularly in the past several years, university administrators have watched campuses become more and more radicalized and racialized.”
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Columbia University President Nemat Minouche Shafik is under pressure to resign her post. (Fox News Digital)
“For decades, but particularly in the past several years, university administrators have watched campuses become more and more radicalized and racialized.”
The university acknowledged the pressure that the administration is facing but did not make Shafik available for an interview.
“President Shafik continues to regularly consult with members of the community, including faculty, administration, and trustees, as well as with state, city, and community leaders,” a Columbia University spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “She appreciates the efforts of those working alongside her on the long road ahead to heal our community.”
Jacobson told Fox News Digital the approach to campus leadership led to a divisive environment pitting different student groups against one another – and the proliferation of antisemitism in particular.
WATCH: Body camera footage shows NYPD breach Hamilton Hall at Columbia University
“Appeasement only made the problem worse, and stopping the appeasement and enforcing the rules is viewed by the protesters as a betrayal,” he said. “Columbia and other universities need to decide if they will try to stem the tide of radicalism or allow it to destroy the university.”
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The campus chapter of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that promotes “academic freedom and shared governance,” called for a vote of no confidence in Shafik and other Columbia administration officials, including the entire board of trustees, on Thursday.
Columbia University President Nemat Minouche Shafik (Fox News Digital)
On the other hand, House Speaker Mike Johnson last week demanded that Shafik resign if she couldn’t stand up to the agitators, calling her leadership “very weak” and “inept.”
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Shafik, a former World Bank economist who was born in Egypt and educated in the U.S. and United Kingdom, said in a statement posted to the university’s website Wednesday that ongoing tensions filled her with a “deep sadness.”
Anti-Israel agitators block the entrance of Hamilton Hall at Columbia University in New York City on April 30, 2024. (AP/Marco Postigo Storel)
“Early Tuesday morning, tensions on our campus rose to new heights when a small group of protesters broke into Hamilton Hall, barricaded themselves inside, and occupied it throughout the day,” she said. “This drastic escalation of many months of protest activity pushed the University to the brink, creating a disruptive environment for everyone and raising safety risks to an intolerable level.”
University leaders appeared to have had enough with the demonstrations after the takeover and requested NYPD assistance.
The AAUP’s Columbia chapter, which is relatively new and only represents a few professors, on Thursday called the NYPD’s entry to Hamilton Hall a “horrific police attack.”
A spokesperson for the national organization declined to comment on the call for a vote of no confidence but said the organization had received reports of violent conduct against “peaceful student protesters.”
Masked agitators barricade themselves inside Hamilton Hall at Columbia University in New York City on April 30, 2024. Police cleared the facility Tuesday evening and arrested dozens of people who had blocked doors with furniture and steel chains. (Alex Kent/Getty Images)
But police supporters note there were no reported injuries.
“By what metric was it horrific? I’ve heard no claim of injury,” said Paul Mauro, a retired NYPD inspector who has been following the standoff. “They were called in by the school. The students were black-letter breaking the law. It’s now known that about half the protesters are not even affiliated with the school.”
In fact, a law enforcement source said that more than half of the Hamilton Hall occupiers were not Columbia students.
“What I find ‘horrific’ is felony burglary at an institute of higher learning, thanks to violent, drop-in anarchist groups,” Mauro added.
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A masked figure smashes a window to get inside Hamilton Hall at Columbia University in New York City on April 30, 2024. (Alex Kent/Getty Images)
There were no official reports of injuries when police cleared the building. However, supporters of the demonstrations have alleged students were hurt during the roundup.
“We have heard a variety of reports and reviewed footage that shows peaceful student protesters treated [violently] by law enforcement,” national AAUP spokesperson Kelly Benjamin told Fox News Digital. “‘Individuals were thrown down stairs, one was left unconscious. Police were tasering peaceful protesters and appear to have used a smoke bomb on campus.”
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WATCH: NYPD release footage from inside barricaded Columbia building
The group’s president, Irene Mulvey, had condemned Shafik for calling in police in response to the initial protests last month, when the NYPD cleared a tent encampment on campus only for another one to pop up on a different lawn.
“Critically evaluating different points of view and putting up to debate even the most deeply held beliefs are what we should be promoting, modeling and supporting,” she said at the time. “President Shafik’s silencing of peaceful protesters and having them hauled off to jail does a grave disservice to Columbia’s reputation and will be a permanent stain on her presidential legacy.”
When asked for comment, the NYPD replied with a link to video of Wednesday’s news briefing on the incident in which New York City Mayor Eric Adams ripped into the “despicable” academic environment that allowed anti-American and anti-Israeli activism to fester.
“My uncle died defending this country, and these men and women put their lives on the line – and it’s despicable that schools will allow another country’s flag to fly in our country,” Adams, a former NYPD captain, told reporters.
“There’s nothing peaceful about barricading buildings, destroying property or dismantling security cameras,” the mayor added.
Hours before the raid, photos showed a mob of masked and keffiyah-clad demonstrators who broke into the building, barricaded the doors and took it over.
Anti-Israel students at Columbia University set up camp on the school’s West Lawn, where they placed tents and demanded administrators divest from Israel and take other steps in support of Hamas’ war on the country. (Micheal Ruiz/Fox News Digital)
By the time police stormed the structure, they found doors chained shut, furniture blocking access and dozens of agitators inside.
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Columbia officials had finally threatened the occupiers with expulsion roughly two weeks into ongoing demonstrations that Jewish students said seethed with antisemitism and intimidation tactics.
Supporters of Students for Justice in Palestine, one of the groups organizing the national anti-Israel demonstrations, insist they are carrying out peaceful protests.
A pro-Palestinian demonstrator holds a flag on the rooftop of Hamilton Hall at Columbia University in New York City on April 30, 2024. (Yuki Iwamura/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
However, multiple students who said they were authorized to speak on behalf of the group declined to discuss their activities with Fox News Digital.
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Police arrested almost 300 people Tuesday night at Hamilton Hall and at another rally at the City College of New York.
Officials placed the campus on lockdown this week and restricted media access on Wednesday and Thursday. Hamilton Hall, where windows were smashed and furniture rearranged to block doors, continued to be considered an “active crime scene.”
Fox News’ CB Cotton contributed to this report.
