Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Pakistani army: 6 soldiers and 7 militants killed in clash near the Afghan border
Israeli media: Sirens sound in the settlement of Kerem Shalom in the Gaza envelope area
Afghan source to Al Mayadeen: We still believe in dialogue and prioritize diplomatic solutions with Pakistan; though we are ready for all possibilities.
Afghan source to Al Mayadeen: Pakistan purposely obstructed negotiations in Turkey by making unrealistic demands.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: More than 70 martyrs in Israeli attacks on Gaza since dawn.
Death toll from latest Israeli strikes on Gaza rises to 30
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Five killed in the Israeli bombing of a civilian vehicle on Al-Qassam Street in Khan Younis, south of the Gaza Strip
Hamas confirms that it has no connection to the shooting incident in Rafah and affirms its commitment to the ceasefire agreement
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Two civilians were killed and four others, including a child and an infant, were injured in an Israeli bombing of a house belonging to the Al-Banna family in the al-Sabra neighborhood, south of Gaza City
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: An Israeli airstrike targets the vicinity of Al-Shifa Medical Complex, west of Gaza City

Columbia Alumni tear diplomas in protest of school, leadership

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: News websites
  • 30 Mar 2025 14:50
5 Min Read

Some students at Saturday’s protest expressed a loss of confidence in their university, citing the recent federal detention of a graduate student as part of the ongoing crackdown on pro-Palestinian activists in the US.

Listen
  • x
  • Columbia University alumni gathered to protest the kidnapping of Mahmoud Khalil, the collaboration between Columbia trustees and ICE, and the ongoing genocide in Gaza. Alumni ripped up their diplomas. (Photos taken by Nina Berman/social media)
    Columbia University alumni gathered to protest the kidnapping of Mahmoud Khalil, the collaboration between Columbia trustees and ICE, and the ongoing genocide in Gaza by ripping up their diplomas (Photos taken by Nina Berman/Social media)

Instead of participating in Columbia University’s annual Alumni Day for the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), a group of alumni gathered to publicly denounce the institution, tearing up their diplomas in protest, NBC News reported.

The demonstration was sparked by the recent detention of Mahmoud Khalil, a SIPA graduate student, Palestinian activist, and green card holder. Khalil was arrested on March 8 by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents at his university-owned apartment.

Organized by SIPA Alumni for Palestine, the protest featured speeches from alumni and current students, followed by chants and a collective destruction of diplomas.

“It’s not easy to do this, with none of us doing this lightly. There’s no joy in this,” said Amali Tower, a 2009 SIPA graduate who spoke at the protest.

Outside of @ColumbiaSIPA, Columbia University alumni gathered to protest the kidnapping of Mahmoud Khalil, the collaboration between Columbia trustees and ICE, and the ongoing genocide in Gaza. Alumni ripped up their diplomas. Photos taken by Nina Berman. pic.twitter.com/PiU5Wl4x24

— Layla 🪬 (@itslaylas) March 29, 2025

Tower, who has personally experienced displacement as an immigrant, emphasized the struggle she faced in earning her master’s degree at Columbia. “I’m not a proud alumni at all, and instead, I want to stand with the students, and I want to stand with Palestinians, and I want to stand with immigrants who are being rounded up and harassed, oppressed, and deported as we speak.”

Throughout the protest, demonstrators held signs and chanted “Free Palestine” and “Free Mahmoud Khalil.” Columbia University did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Khalil’s detention and government response

Khalil’s legal team has confirmed that he is currently being held in a Louisiana detention facility.

The Trump administration has justified his arrest, stating that Khalil’s involvement in pro-Palestine campus protests poses a threat to US foreign policy. Secretary of State Marco Rubio made it clear that this is just the beginning of a broader crackdown, with Trump’s administration planning to target student visa holders who engage in similar activism.

“Once you’ve lost your visa, you’re no longer legal in the United States. And we have a right, like every country in the world, to remove you from our country,” Rubio stated this week.

He further explained the administration’s stance, saying, “If you apply for a visa to enter the United States and be a student, and you tell us that the reason why you’re coming to the United States is not just because you want to write op-eds, but because you want to participate in movements that are involved in doing things like vandalizing universities, harassing students, taking over buildings, creating a ruckus—we’re not going to give you a visa.”

Related News

How an Israeli-backed firm spied on US churches to push propaganda

White House plan links funding to campus culture, admissions: WSJ

Leadership turmoil at Columbia

Khalil’s detention comes amid a leadership shake-up at Columbia.

On Friday, the university announced that its interim president, Katrina Armstrong, had stepped down to return to her role at Columbia’s Irving Medical Center. Her departure follows the university’s decision to negotiate with the Trump administration over restoring its federal funding.

She has been replaced by Claire Shipman, co-chair of Columbia’s Board of Trustees, making her the university’s third president in less than a year. Shipman, a former White House correspondent for NBC News, CNN, and ABC News, previously testified before Congress about Columbia’s efforts to combat antisemitism.

However, protesters expressed skepticism about the leadership change.

Hannah, a 2024 alumna, who declined to provide her last name due to safety concerns, dismissed the significance of the transition. “It’s another figurehead that the Board of Trustees is going to use to do their bidding. I don’t think it matters,” she said, as quoted by NBC News.

She criticized previous university leaders, stating, “I think Minouche Shafik did an awful job. I think the interim President Armstrong did an awful job. I think Shipman is going to do an awful job because they’re not listening to their students. They’re listening to the Board of Trustees.”

Hannah also ripped up her diploma, explaining that her Jewish values compelled her to stand in solidarity with marginalized communities. “I’m here today because I’m Jewish, and my Jewish beliefs tell me to show up for communities that are being oppressed, that are being targeted,” she said.

Broader crackdown on student activists

Columbia is not the only university experiencing the detention of students. Federal authorities have also taken foreign-born students from Tufts University, Georgetown University, and the University of Minnesota into custody.

At the Columbia protest, some current students voiced fears about the climate on campus.

“Students are terrified to set foot on campus. I’m one of them, so just the fact that I’m here is scary because of the way that our colleagues have disappeared,” said Jasmine Sarryeh, a SIPA student pursuing a master’s in public affairs and a friend of Khalil’s.

She also questioned the value of a Columbia education in light of recent events.

“Columbia University used to be a bastion of freedom of speech and academic freedom, and it’s headed in a really dangerous direction,” she told NBC News.

Warning that the university risks compromising its core values, she added, “If they don’t start standing up for Mahmoud and all the protesters that were basically enacting their constitutional freedom of speech and right to freedom of assembly, that will set them down a very dark path that I hope the university doesn’t go down.”

Read more: Trump's pro-Palestine purge may bar foreign students: Axios

  • US universities
  • pro-Palestine protest
  • crackdown on dissent
  • Mahmoud Khalil
  • Columbia Alumni
  • Donald Trump

Most Read

'Israel’s Digital Iron Dome: Weaponizing the web against Palestine

'Israel’s Digital Iron Dome: Weaponizing the web against Palestine

  • Technology
  • 24 Oct 2025
Arab League chief exposes secret US deal shielding 'Israel’s' nukes

Arab League chief exposes secret US deal shielding 'Israel’s' nukes

  • Politics
  • 27 Oct 2025
US missionary kidnapped in Niger capital, suspected taken toward Mali

US missionary kidnapped in Niger capital, suspected taken toward Mali

  • Africa
  • 23 Oct 2025
What Marr evidently didn't seem to understand was that Hedges isn't saying that Western journalists manipulate the truth, but that they systematically amplify Israeli narratives they know are false. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)

Western journalists know they have a case to answer for their betrayal of Gaza, and it frightens them

  • Opinion
  • 24 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
Saudi's PIF refocuses on AI, logistics, and religious tourism
Economy

Saudi Arabia's fund refocuses on AI, logistics, and religious tourism

Detained Bahraini activist al-Khawaja starts new hunger strike.
Politics

Detained Bahraini activist al-Khawaja starts new hunger strike

Israel fortifies Gaza’s "yellow line," prepares to dig in.
Politics

'Israel' fortifies Gaza’s 'yellow line,' prepares to dig in: WSJ

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters aboard Air Force One as he travels from Tokyo, Japan, to South Korea, on October 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Asia

Trump’s weak dollar strategy risks global fallout: Forbes

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS