New York Hosts First US Faculty-Led Gaza Protest Encampment at The New School

People rally outside The New School as faculty members establish an encampment inside a campus building in support of Palestinians. (Photo: Reuters)

May 10, 2024 Story by: Editor

The first faculty-led Gaza solidarity protest encampment in the United States was established on Wednesday night at New York's New School campus.

Approximately two dozen professors and lecturers at the New York City college set up tents and laid out sleeping bags in the lobby of an academic building in Greenwich Village, Manhattan. This action was in solidarity with their students and in opposition to Israel’s assault on Gaza and the university’s financial ties to Israel.

This protest follows a raid by New York police on a student-led encampment at the college on May 3, resulting in the arrests of over 40 students , who were subsequently suspended from the school.

Despite this crackdown, dissent is growing on the campus.

Sunil, a faculty member at the New School who preferred to use only his first name, told Spectrum News NY1 , "Faculty knew that we had to step up—not just to make sure that this could not happen again, but to show that the students' demands, for which they fought so hard and risked their lives and careers, were not in vain."

"I’m seeing dead children on my screen every day. I’m seeing bodies pile up in the streets. I’m seeing mass starvation. So what are you seeing and how is that acceptable?" Sunil questioned.

The protesters' demands include the New School disclosing and divesting its financial interests in Israel, amid the ongoing military assault on Gaza, a densely populated Palestinian territory.

In a statement released Thursday, the New School announced it would not pursue criminal charges against the student protesters arrested on May 3. "We have contacted and written a letter to the District Attorney requesting that all charges be dropped," the statement read.

The statement also mentioned plans to review the university's investments and reactivate a college committee to address the issue of divestment. "[We] will soon be announcing a significant educational effort about investment principles and the history of divestment at The New School."

Since the October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas fighters, which resulted in nearly 1,200 deaths and hundreds of hostages taken, Israel has launched extensive bombing and ground campaigns in Gaza, resulting in the deaths of over 30,000 Palestinians, the majority of whom are women, children, and other civilians.

Although the US staunchly supports Israel, the military assault has sparked outrage in many countries and drawn condemnation from NGOs and United Nations bodies. The head of the United Nations World Food Program declared that northern Gaza is experiencing a “full-blown famine” due to the Israeli attacks and restrictions on humanitarian aid.

This Gaza solidarity protest encampment at the New School is part of a broader movement that began at Columbia University in April. Since then, universities including Columbia, NYU, UCLA, the University of Texas at Austin, Emory, and George Washington University have requested local police forces to disperse these largely peaceful protests, fueling a nationwide debate on free speech limits and police conduct.

More than 2,000 arrests have been made on US campuses in recent weeks. Source: The Guardian

The encampment protests have also spread beyond the US, reaching the United Kingdom, Ireland, Spain, Germany, France, Switzerland, Austria, Mexico, and other countries.