Columbia University at the Forefront of National Student Movement for Gaza Divestment

Columbia University, located in New York City, has been at the forefront of a student movement for Gaza that has spread to over 154 campuses across the United States. In a special episode of Intercepted, we hear about this movement from Prem Thakker, a politics reporter for The Intercept, and Gillian Goodman, a freelance writer and journalism graduate student at Columbia University. Thakker breaks down the campus protests and explains the students’ demands for schools to sever financial ties with Israel and weapons manufacturers. Goodman provides insight into the protest encampment at Columbia University, which served as the inspiration for similar demonstrations across the country until it was forcibly dismantled by law enforcement.

Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington has agreed to work with students to divest from companies that profit from human rights violations and the occupation of Palestinian territories. This move makes Evergreen State one of only a few colleges to reach such agreements with students who are protesting Israel’s actions in Gaza. The protests have spread beyond Evergreen State’s campus and have become a national movement.