Pro-Palestine Protests in US: What's Next For Students Amid Arrest and Suspension From Universities?

New York: The pro-Palestine protests across the United States universities heated up amid a clash between the demonstrators and police in Texas, and Columbia began suspending students. From the East Coast to the West Coast in the US, the pro-Palestine protests have occupied the main courtyard.

'Leave Encampment or Else Face Suspension'

Just three hours after giving an ultimatum to students to leave an encampment of around 120 tents on the school's Manhattan campus by 2 pm or else "be suspended pending further investigation, NBC News reported.

Despite the warning, at around 2:45 pm, protesters marched up to the quad chanting, clapping and sloganeering "Disclose! Divest! We Will not slow, we will not rest!"

Meanwhile, a handful of counter-protesters waved Israeli flags.

Following this, Ben Chang, Vice president at Columbia University said, "We have begun suspending students." However, it is not clear how many students have been suspended.

Chang added that while the university appreciated the free speech rights of students, the encampment was preparing for final exams and the protests were making Jewish students uncomfortable.

What's Next For Students? Columbia Under Fire Amid Suspending Students

Columbia’s handling of the protests has prompted federal complaints. Jewish students at the campus have filed a class-action lawsuit alleging a breach of contract by the university and claiming that the school failed to provide a safe learning environment.

Meanwhile, a legal group representing the pro-Palestine protesters urged the US Department of Education’s civil rights office to investigate Columbia’s compliance with the Civil Rights Act of 1964 for how the students have been treated.

Protests at Other US Universities

At the University of Texas at Austin, some 40 sitting protesters were arrested on Monday by the officers. The clash erupted after another group of demonstrates trapped police and a van full of arrestees, creating mass pushing and shoving, prompting police to use pepper spray and flash-ban devices to clear the crowd.

Colleges are wrapping up for semester and are preparing for graduation ceremonies, giving institutions an extra incentive to clear the encampments.

The University of Southern California recently cancelled its main graduation ceremony.

But students continue to dig their heels at high-profile colleges. Columbia was the first one to be struck by the pro-Palestine protests. Others on the list include Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, Yale, New York University, Northwestern University etc.

Pro-Palestine Protests Spread to Europe

The demonstrations over the Israel-Hams conflict are sparring across the world, and several instances of clashes over the protests were spotted in Europe.

The French police removed dozens of students from the Sorbonne university after protesters occupied the main courtyard.

On the other hand, similar situations were reported in Canada, where student protest camps have popped up at the University of Ottawa, McGill University in Montreal and the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, as per local media.

(Inputs from AP)