Pro-Palestine protesters torch diplomas outside Columbia University
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Columbia University students burn their diplomas after graduation, in protest against the school’s ties to "Israel" and Trump’s crackdown on campus activism.
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Alumni and students rip up diplomas across the street from the main gates of Columbia University, on May 21, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa)
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators at Columbia University set fire to their diplomas following a graduation ceremony on Wednesday, intensifying backlash against the university’s investment ties and research collaboration with "Israel."
Chanting "Free Palestine" and holding a Palestinian flag inscribed with "Free Mahmoud Khalil", the students gathered in defiance of the university administration and ongoing federal threats from President Donald Trump.
The protest, marked by chants of "You’re committing genocide" and the rhythmic beat of drums, took place in the rain just outside the official ceremony. Some students burned their diplomas, while others tore them to pieces and raised them overhead, denouncing what they viewed as the university’s complicity in "Israel’s" ongoing war on Gaza.
The New York City Police Department (NYPD) reported intervening to extinguish the flames and confirmed one arrest at the scene.
The demonstration also highlighted the case of Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian activist and Columbia graduate who was arrested in New York on March 8.
Khalil played a key role in organizing nationwide campus protests against "Israel’s" war on Gaza.
His arrest, which came without due process, has become a symbol of escalating repression against pro-Palestinian campus activism. Protesters at Columbia repeatedly invoked his name, demanding his immediate release and an end to politically motivated detentions.
Trump’s crackdown on pro-Palestinian students
Columbia University has come under increasing pressure from the Trump administration, which recently revoked $400 million in federal funding and threatened further cuts in response to the university’s handling of pro-Palestinian student protests.
Trump has also begun enforcing policies to deport non-citizen student activists involved in the demonstrations, accusing them of being "adversarial to the foreign policy and national security interests" of the US due to their opposition to the Israeli occupation and the genocidal war on Gaza.
Columbia is one of several US universities witnessing a surge in student-led protests against the war on Gaza and US support for the Israeli occupation.
Two weeks ago, demonstrators occupied a Columbia library, leading to mass arrests and the administration’s vow to tighten restrictions on campus protests.
