Columbia University Sued Over Failure To Protect Pro-Palestinian Students
Pro-Palestinian student activists have filed a lawsuit against Columbia University, alleging the institution failed to protect them from harassment and discrimination. The plaintiffs claim the university fostered an environment of anti-Palestinian bigotry and ignored reports of threats.
Why it matters
The lawsuit underscores the ongoing legal and social tensions on university campuses regarding free speech, student safety, and the geopolitical conflict in Gaza.
Mahmoud Khalil and other pro-Palestinian student activists sued Columbia University on Monday, accusing the Ivy League school of being deliberately indifferent to years of pervasive harassment because of their advocacy.Khalil became a face of the Trump administration crackdown on students' pro-Palestinian protests after US immigration agents arrested him in March 2025 in the lobby of his university residence, though he was a lawful permanent resident - or green card holder - and not accused of a crime.The complaint filed in Manhattan federal court by Khalil, the SIPA Palestine Working Group and its president, Mohammad Zubairi, said Columbia violated federal civil rights law through its failure to protect students from threats, doxxing and other harassment based on their perceived Arab or Muslim ancestry, or their advocacy for Palestinian rights.The war in Gaza still sparks fierce debate at schools including Columbia, where the central pedestrian walkway across campus has been closed for…
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