On March 10, 2014 Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine created a banner to advertise USA Israeli Apartheid Week. The banner featured a map of historic Palestine and the tag line “Stand for Justice, Stand for Palestine -CSJP IAW”. The banner received administrative approval through all the necessary bureaucratic channels, yet despite this, was removed 12 hours after its hanging after pressure from other groups. (our statement on the matter here )
On March 23, 2015 a journalist tweeted on her personal twitter account to promote Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine’s media panel. In response, an anonymous twitter user tweeted all the panelists and Columbia SJP, sending harassing tweets culminating in a bomb threat. (read our statement on the matter here )
Today, Center for Constitutional Rights and Palestine Legal have released a report compiling the hundreds of cases of activist suppression they have responded to. Overall, Columbia University and Barnard College are mentioned over 15 times for different instances of suppression targeting student activists and professors. The report, entitled “The Palestine Exception to Free Speech: A Movement Under Attack in the US,” can be read in full here.