Where Pro-Palestinian campus protests are emerging again
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
New York City police arrested dozens of Pro-Palestinian protesters at Columbia University in New York on May 7. Photo: Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images
Dozens have been arrested across the country as campus demonstrations against the Israel-Hamas war have reignited again.
The big picture: The protests — reminiscent of the wave of demonstrations on college campuses last spring — come as the Trump administration has cracked down on universities for incidents of alleged antisemitism and targeted individual protesters.
Driving the news: Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday said the administration would review the visas of demonstrators at Columbia University — the epicenter of last year's campus protests.
- Dozens of universities were put on notice earlier this year that they're being investigated over allegations of antisemitic harassment and discrimination. The warnings came shortly after Trump threatened to yank federal funds from any schools or university that allows "illegal protests."
Zoom out: Israel approved a plan earlier this week to flatten all of Gaza and occupy it indefinitely if a hostage and ceasefire deal is not reached by May 15. The plan would cause massive displacement amid an already dire humanitarian crisis.
- Israel's military operations in Gaza have killed at least 52,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to the health ministry in Hamas-led Gaza.
Here are where new pro-Palestinian campus demonstrations are cropping up:
Columbia University: Dozens detained after library occupation
At least 80 people were detained on May 7 after the university called in the police over a crowd of demonstrators who had occupied part of Columbia's Butler Library, multiple outlets reported.
- The demonstration came amid rising tensions between the Trump and the university, with the administration revoking $400 million in federal funding over allegations of antisemitism.
University of Washington: Building occupation prompts arrests
Around 30 people were arrested after a group of demonstrators "temporarily occupied and vandalized" a building on UW's Seattle campus on May 5, the university said.
- The Trump administration announced that it would review "recent incidents" of antisemitic "violence" at the university and its affiliates, describing the demonstrators as "[p]ro-terror protestors."
- The university said Wednesday that it had suspended 21 students who were arrested during the protest and had received notice that the task force had initiated a review of the university's federal funds.
Yale University: Protest erupts over Israeli official's visit
Hundreds of protesters gathered the night of April 23 to condemn a visit to a private society at the university from Israel's far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, multiple outlets reported.
- "Water bottles were thrown," at the official, per a statement his office provided to CNN.
- The president's antisemitism task force said in a statement that videos had surfaced of "an antisemitic encampment and outrageous examples of harassment and bigotry" in New Haven, Connecticut, where Yale is located.
- The statement added that the president's panel was "cautiously encouraged by Yale's actions."
Go deeper: Scoop: State Dept. to use AI to revoke visas of foreign students who appear "pro-Hamas"
