Regarding the arrests of protestors, Columbia University is facing a civil rights lawsuit

Following the mass arrest of anti-war protestors last week, when the university asked police to demolish demonstrator encampments, a pro-Palestinian US organization filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against Columbia University, the group said on Thursday.

The US Education Department has been encouraged to look into the school’s actions, which Palestine Legal claims were discriminatory against pro-Palestinian individuals. Palestine Legal works to defend Americans’ rights to speak up for Palestinians.

An inquiry for comment was not immediately answered by Columbia University.

When Columbia President Minouche Shafik made the extraordinary decision to invite New York City police to access the campus last week, many human rights organizations, students, and faculty members were enraged, and the institution attempted to use force to put an end to student protests. More than 100 individuals were taken into custody, evoking memories of the anti-Vietnam War protests held at Columbia University almost 50 years ago.

Since then, hundreds of people have been jailed as a result of protests that started at Columbia and expanded to other American schools in the last week.

The protesters demanded an end to the Gaza war, in which Israel is said to have killed 34,000 people, according to the health ministry of Gaza. This has forced almost all of Gaza’s inhabitants to flee, resulting in widespread famine and accusations of genocide, which Israel disputes. The conflict has sparked heated debate in the US, Israel’s most significant backer.

Groups that advocate for the rights of Jews, Arabs, and Palestinians see an increase in prejudice.

The deadly stabbing of a 6-year-old Palestinian American in Illinois in October, the shooting of three students of Palestinian heritage in Vermont in November, and the stabbing of a Palestinian American man in Texas in February are just a few concerning US events.

Miguel Cardona, the US Education Secretary, said on Thursday that he was keeping an eye on news about alleged antisemitism on college campuses. A former Cornell University student entered a guilty plea earlier this month for making threats against Jewish students on campus, including ones involving violence and death.

After Islamist Hamas terrorists assaulted Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people, according to Israeli counts, Israel launched an invasion of Gaza. Israel claims that its operations since October 7 have been in self-defense in response to those assaults, while Hamas claims that its military activities represent resistance against Israeli occupation.