Stony Brook University students stage sit-in over Israel-Hamas war, crackdown on pro-Palestinian protestors

Stony Brook University students and faculty members staged a sit-in to call for divestment from Israel and protections for international students, amid a crackdown by the Trump administration on foreign-born students who have expressed pro-Palestinian views.

Around 20 students and a handful of faculty members sat in a circle Wednesday afternoon in the lobby of the university’s administration building in the hopes of starting a conversation with university officials. Several students wore face masks and most would not provide their full names to Newsday, citing concerns such as facing disciplinary consequences for their participation in the protest.

The event was peaceful, with no police presence. In addition to laying out their demands, the group talked among themselves, worked on sticker-decorated laptops and snacked on Peruvian fry bread baked by one of the attendees as campus administration officials, including Ric McClendon, assistant vice president and dean of students, watched from the other side of the lobby.

Manisha Desai, a professor of sociology and women’s studies and the executive director of the campus’ Center for Changing Systems of Power, said she attended the demonstration “in solidarity with the students who have been protesting for a year.”

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrest, detention and potential deportation of recent Columbia University graduate student and pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil, who is in the United States legally, has become “a conversation on campus” among concerned students, Desai said.

“International students particularly feel more vulnerable,” Desai said. “I think everybody is very tense because there’s so much uncertainty.”

Demonstrators urged campus administration to refuse to cooperate with ICE and provide both “know your rights” trainings and “access to confidential immigration legal services,” according to a pamphlet distributed ahead of the sit-in.

"Keeping our students safe is paramount, and we will continue to follow all federal, state and local laws and guidance from the New York State Attorney General," said a statement by Stony Brook University officials. The statement also said the university does "not tolerate discrimination and harassment, and as a public university we are committed to freedom of speech subject to our content-neutral  time, place and manner restrictions." 

 A university spokeswoman told Newsday last year that Stony Brook “has no direct investments in Israel,” but did not elaborate.

Protest anniversary

The protest marked one year since a similar, larger protest on campus resulted in nine arrests.

During that demonstration, students marched through the campus before holding a staged sit-in at the administration building. Twenty-nine people were arrested at another pro-Palestinian protest a few weeks later.

Protests have been held on college campuses nationwide since the Israel-Hamas war began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas killed 1,200 Israelis. More than 50,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. A brief ceasefire in the conflict ended March 18, when Israel launched strikes across the Gaza Strip that killed hundreds of people, according to The Associated Press.

In recent weeks, President Donald Trump's administration has targeted foreign-born students who have shown support for the Palestinian cause. It has also put pressure on universities like Columbia to do more to protect Jewish students from antisemitism.

Columbia agreed to policy changes regarding how it handles student discipline and protests after the Trump administration pulled $400 million in federal funding from the Manhattan university, The AP reported.