Ramona Sarsgaard, an 18-year-old freshman at Columbia University, got arrested during campus protests on Wednesday. She’s the daughter of actors Maggie Gyllenhaal and Peter Sarsgaard. These protests focused on opposing Israel’s brutal and destabilizing military campaign in Gaza, with students being at the forefront of protests advocating for political change.
The protests involved students hanging a banner proclaiming “Strike for Gaza” and renaming a section of the campus as the Basel al-Araj People’s University. Participants handed out pamphlets calling on the university to divest from certain investments tied to the ongoing conflict. In the thick of this crackdown on protestors, Ramona Sarsgaard received a desk appearance ticket for criminal trespassing through this interaction.
Over the last two months, Columbia University has experienced the most sustained student activism against an ongoing war. This one in Gaza. Columbia graduate Mahmoud Khalil, now 27, remains in custody at an immigration detention facility in Louisiana. At the same time, another student, green-card holder Mohsen Mahdawi, has just been released from one such detainment. Federal authorities have arrested dozens of students as a result of their anti-war activism.
Gregory Wawro, a university official, addressed the situation in an email, noting that a student may have “participated in a disruptive protest in 301 Butler Library.” This incident indicates the increasing fear by the university administrators of disruption to academic business, particularly at this time as final exams are about to begin.
Claire Shipman, a spokesperson for Columbia University, reiterated the university’s position on being able to keep order when classes are in session.
“Disruptions to our academic activities will not be tolerated and are violations of our rules and policies; this is especially unacceptable while our students study and prepare for final exams.” – Claire Shipman
The protests at Columbia represent the movement’s tip of the spear. Students on over 30 universities are protesting in solidarity with Palestinians and calling for a halt to military attacks in Gaza. After surviving fierce opposition, student activists connected with ColumbiaBDS made it clear they would continue fighting for their cause.
“We are facing one of the largest militarized police forces in the world. Deputized public safety officers have choked and beaten us, but we have not wavered … We will not be useless intellectuals. Palestine is our compass, and we stand strong in the face of violent repression.” – ColumbiaBDS (student activists)
After taking measures to suspend one student reporter temporarily, Columbia University lifted the temporary suspension just five hours after notifying them. This decision follows the university’s recent arrest of over 30 protesters. In a related story, Barnard College allowed those three student journalists to return to their posts that Friday morning after suspending them Thursday afternoon.
The backdrop of these protests adds to the complex and often fraught environment on college campuses when it comes to navigating important global political questions. Students are navigating the duality of being both a scholar and an activist. At the same time, the administration’s ongoing repression of protests is turning the debate over academic freedom and political expression in schools on its head.