Columbia University Alumni Rip Diplomas and Renounce Degrees on ‘Alumni Day’
On Saturday, Columbia University held its annual “Alumni Day” for graduates of the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA).
The alumni event, however, was attended by protesters in support of Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University graduate who was detained in March by ICE and sent to a facility in Louisiana for leading the pro-Palestinian encampment protest at Columbia University. Specifically, ICE detained him, rather than local law enforcement, because he is an Algerian citizen with a US green card.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defended ICE’s move to detain Khalil: “This administration is not going to tolerate individuals having the privilege of studying in our country and then siding with pro-terrorist organisations that have killed Americans.”
SIPA graduates — in conjunction with the group SIPA Alumni For Palestine — participated in the Saturday protests. Notably, alumni ripped their diplomas and chanted “Free Palestine” in protest of Khalil’s detainment and the university’s acceptance of White House demands to prevent disruptive protests. Mahmoud Khalil is also a graduate from Columbia’s SIPA.
One student spoke in support of the protest efforts and against immigrant deportation:
“It’s not easy to do this, with none of us doing this lightly. There’s no joy in this. 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.”
According to Fox News, some said they “renounced” their degree prior to shredding their diplomas. Some students refuse to attend the college there even after being accepted.
A university spokesperson told Fox Digital that Columbia was aware of the Saturday protests but did not consider them disruptive or incidental:
“As the University has made clear, any disruptions to our academic mission, our classrooms or our educational spaces is unacceptable, and the University will enforce its policies and rules as necessary. The University is aware of Saturday’s off-campus protest and the demonstration took place without incident.”
