Columbia University President Resigns, but School’s Troubles With Leftist Protesters Far From Over

Columbia University President Minouche Shafik, in office for just over a year, announced Wednesday that she would resign her position amid continuing backlash over anti-Israel demonstrations on campus.

Shafik had been a holdout who remained at the helm of a university after she and other school presidents appeared in a series of House hearings this spring on antisemitism on college campuses. 

“I write with sadness to tell you that I am stepping down as president of Columbia University effective August 14, 2024,” Shafik wrote in her resignation letter. “I have had the honor and privilege to lead this incredible institution, and I believe that—working together—we have made progress in a number of important areas.” 

The presidents of Harvard and UPenn resigned shortly after their much-criticized hearing appearances. The last president standing now is MIT President Sally Kornbluth.

Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., sharply criticized Shafik when she appeared before the House Education and the Workforce Committee. Stefanik pointed out that a Columbia professor had called Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attack on Israel “awesome.”

Shafik said that the issue had been dealt with, but the radical professor’s name remained on Columbia’s website.

Israel went to war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, which the terrorist organization governs, when Hamas slaughtered 1,200 and kidnapped about 250 in a rampage of rape, torture, and murder Oct. 7 in southern Israel. The Israel-Hamas war’s toll on Palestinian civilians in Gaza sparked sometimes antisemitic protests on university campuses and elsewhere. 

A professor’s scolding was hardly the end of the saga for Columbia University.

Anti-Israel protests continued at the school, with participants denouncing Israel, the New York Police Department, and the United States.

The protests, which involved both students and outsiders, culminated with a violent takeover of Hamilton Hall, a building on campus. The NYPD was called in to break up the protest. 

Soon after, Shafik and the school’s administration canceled Columbia’s commencement ceremonies.

“Holding a large commencement ceremony on our campus presented security concerns that unfortunately proved insurmountable,” a Columbia spokesman said in a written statement. “Like our students, we are deeply disappointed with this outcome.”

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg—a Democrat who conducted the recent prosecution of former President Donald Trump—dropped nearly all charges against the protesters who broke into Hamilton Hall.

Shafik’s resignation may mark the end of her time running Columbia University, but it hardly fixes the problems on her campus and others.

Campus protests have quieted down for now, but schools largely have been out of session for the summer.

It’s clear that those who protested the campuses are no less angry or fanatical than they were months ago, and they plan to continue with their disruptions.

An organization called Columbia University Apartheid Divest recently called for the “total eradication” of Western civilization.

“We are Westerners fighting for the total eradication of Western civilization,” the group said in an Instagram post, according to The National Desk. 

The organization made the statement in support of protesters in Bengal.

“We stand in full solidarity with every movement for liberation in the Global South,” the group said. “Our intifada is an internationalist one—we are fighting for nothing less than the liberation of all people.”

A Columbia student who called for the murder of Zionists has deleted his later apology, The Daily Wire’s Kassy Akiva reported Monday.

According to Campus Reform, students at Columbia and other universities plan to return to their anti-Israel protests when classes resume in the fall.