Pro-Palestinian protesters demonstrate against expulsions at Barnard gates, call for fair negotiations and divestment
On Thursday, February 27, dozens of protesters gathered at the main Barnard gates to protest the expulsions of two students and call for university divestment as campus access is tightened.
Photography by Marielen Espino/The Barnard Bulletin
By Julia Parsa and Jaya Shankar
March 1, 2025
In the wake of the expulsions of two Barnard students who disrupted the first day of the “History of Modern Israel” course at Columbia, an Instagram post by Columbia University Apartheid Divestment (CUAD) on Monday, February 24 called for “a full week of action demanding Barnard reinstate our students now.” These actions included signing an online petition, repeatedly telephoning Dean Leslie Grinage and Barnard CARES, and a “sick-out” picket line this past Thursday.
Dozens of protesters, many of whom wore keffiyehs, masks, or sunglasses, gathered in front of the gates at 12:45 p.m., forming a crowd extending toward 116th Street. Many held up handmade signs with declarations such as “Barnard, Your Hands Are Red” or “Resist Until Victory.” The students were joined by a group of about ten protesters affiliated with Neturei Karta, a Haredi Jewish group supporting Palestinian self-determination.
Protesters chanted “Free, free Palestine” and “Don’t cross the picket line, we must honor Palestine.” Some protesters also distributed flyers listing CUAD’s demands, which included “abolition of the corrupt Barnard disciplinary process and complete transparency for current, past, and future disciplinary proceedings.”
Photography by Marielen Espino/The Barnard Bulletin
Flyers distributed at the protest list CUAD's demands, addressed to VP and Barnard College Dean Leslie Grinage and President Laura Rosenbury. Photography by Marielen Espino/The Barnard Bulletin
At 1:17 p.m., NYPD officers extended the barricade, restricted the protest area to the half
of the sidewalk nearest Broadway, and divided the space directly in front of the gates down the middle to form two pathways. Police broadcasted a message to the demonstrators, saying “unless you are willing to risk arrest, stay on the other side of the barricade.” Moving to remain behind the barricade, the protesters chanted: “It is right to rebel, NYPD, go to hell.” Occasionally students would leave or enter Barnard’s campus, some of whom expressed their support for the protest by clapping or joining in the chants.
By 1:25 p.m., a counter-protest affiliated with the End Jew Hatred movement gathered next to the picket. A group of about 40 people, some with Israeli flags draped around their shoulders, carried signs with slogans such as “We Just Want To Go To Class” and “#EndJewHatred.” Individuals came to the front of the group to make speeches, chanting “enough is enough.” Among the speakers was Columbia Business School assistant professor Shai Davidai, who has been a prominent voice against pro-Palestinian activism and has been temporarily banned from Columbia’s campus on multiple occasions for intimidating students and faculty.
Photography by Marielen Espino/The Barnard Bulletin
Some participants in the counter-protest attempted to approach the pro-Palestinian demonstrators, jeering at them and making derogatory comments, but were escorted away by NYPD officers. By 2 p.m., the counter-protest had dispersed.
Thursday’s pro-Palestinian protest is the second in two days. The day prior, on Wednesday, February 26, approximately 60 protesters held a sit-in for over six hours in Milbank Hall outside Dean Grinage’s office, organized by CUAD. Demanding an “immediate reversal” of the student expulsions, the protesters at the sit-in negotiated an agreement for three student representatives to meet Dean Grinage and President Rosenbury the following day at 1 p.m. Faculty negotiator Nara Milanich announced that the representatives would be allowed to wear masks and not present their IDs.
However, during the Thursday protest at 1:35 p.m., two of the student negotiators appeared at the Barnard gates to inform the protestors through a megaphone that “one of the faculty mediators just said Rosenbury is just a fundraiser. She doesn’t care about her students … [Barnard is] negotiating in bad faith.” According to an Instagram post by CUAD, “Barnard is going back on their word and refusing to meet with student negotiators unless they unmask and identify themselves — despite ongoing security, disciplinary, and doxxing risks.”
The demonstration continued in front of Barnard with students chanting: “Barnard College you can’t hide, we will never let this slide,” and “One, we are the students, two, we won’t stop fighting, three, we want divestment now, now, now.” NYPD officers remained present, with over 30 officers spread out along the barricades, clustered at the gate, and standing by the 116th Street subway entrance.
Around 2:45 p.m., the group of protestors, which had thinned to a few dozen, left the Barnard gates and walked down to 116th Street, then marched up Claremont Avenue behind the Barnard campus, and came back up 120th Street to Broadway. Students placed stickers with slogans such as “Columbia University Is Watching You” and “The Students United Will Never Be Defeated” on the outer walls of Hewitt Dining Hall, the Milstein Center, and Milbank Hall.
Photography by Marielen Espino/The Barnard Bulletin
Between Claremont Avenue and Broadway at 120th Street, behind Milbank Hall, NYPD officers forcibly detained a protester. An officer tackled the student to the ground while other officers formed a barrier around them, blocking the view of the protesters. The marching stopped momentarily as students called repeatedly for the officer to release her.
A CUAD Instagram story showed protesters continuing up Broadway to join a protest at the City College of New York.
The Wednesday sit-in and Thursday picket come after tightened restrictions to Barnard’s campus. On Tuesday, February 25, Executive Vice President for Strategy and Chief Administrative Officer Kelli Murray announced the implementation of “additional temporary security measures over the next several days,” in an email to the Barnard community, responding to “statements circulating online about possible disruptions on campus.” These measures included limiting campus access to BC/CUID holders, closing all entrances except the main gates at 117th Street, potential unmasking requests, and bag searches.
At 8 a.m. on Thursday, February 27, Barnard transitioned to campus access Level C, during which the only point of entry was the main gate entrance, and no guests were permitted at all. This further restriction to campus access came after the Wednesday night sit-in in Milbank Hall, which was not announced publicly by CUAD as part of their week of action against the expulsions.
In another email to the Barnard community a few hours following the conclusion of the picket, Kelli Murray announced that beginning 8 a.m. on Friday, February 28, “campus access will be extended to Barnard College and Columbia University ID holders and guests approved through the Workday guest process,” returning the campus access level from C to B. However, the main gate at 117th Street and Broadway will remain the only way to enter Barnard’s campus until further notice.
Photography by Marielen Espino/The Barnard Bulletin
