NEW YORK (AP) – The director of Columbia University delivered an opening speech on Wednesday. Student activist Mahmoud Khalil, who was set to receive his diploma this week, will instead be at a Louisiana prison facing deportation due to his involvement in pro-Palestinian campus protests.
A brief address prompted strong reactions from alumni, including boos and chants of “Free Palestine.” Acting President Claire Shipman also referenced the Trump administration’s crackdown on international students, which has affected Ivy League institutions in recent months.
“We believe that international students have the same right to free speech as everyone else, and they should not be targeted by the government for exercising this right,” Shipman stated.
Khalil, a graduate student in the Columbia International Affairs Program, has been in custody since March 8, when immigration agents apprehended him at an off-campus apartment in Manhattan. He missed the birth of his first child during his detention, and his lawyer noted that his repeated requests to see the newborn were denied by the prison.
During Shipman’s speech under gloomy skies, some students departed and others expressed their dissent. The acting president took office in late March, facing a similarly chilly reception at a small graduation ceremony on Tuesday.
Protests erupted across the street from the university’s main gates on Wednesday, with at least one individual in a blue Columbia graduation robe being arrested by the New York City Police Department, which had no immediate additional details about the incident.
Some students and faculty members are speaking out against the demands of the Trump administration, which they feel are compromising the protection of foreign students.
While federal authorities have not charged Khalil with a crime, his prominent role in the protests has led to efforts to expel him. His involvement in the protests against Israel’s war in Gaza could be seen as detrimental to U.S. foreign policy interests.
Khalil is expected to appear before a Louisiana immigration judge on Thursday, where it was previously determined he could be legally deported.
Before that hearing, Khalil’s lawyers are urging federal judges to permit them to meet with his wife and child in person, rather than through a Plexiglass barrier. The prison has not responded to inquiries regarding this request.
Source: apnews.com