So far, Long Island college protests over Hamas-Israel war mostly peaceful
A resolution by the student government at Stony Brook University late last week asked the school to divest itself from Israel but administrators Tuesday called the resolution “regrettable.”
Stony Brook University's student government passed a resolution late last week calling on the school to boycott and divest itself from Israel. On Tuesday, school administrators criticized the measure as “regrettable.”
The Undergraduate Student Government resolution noted numerous other college student governments have called on their schools to divest from Israel, including Columbia Law, SUNY Binghamton, UCLA and Harvard Law School.
Like Stony Brook, students at other Long Island universities have responded to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war with actions of their own: At Hofstra University in Uniondale, the conflict prompted the student government to pass a resolution in support of the right to free speech on campus. At Farmingdale State College, students supporting Palestinian victims of the war have held at least one demonstration that began and ended peacefully.
And while demonstrations by students at Long Island universities and colleges have so far gone off with only isolated campus disruptions and relatively few arrests, the protesters remain committed to their cause, with only weeks left before graduation ceremonies.
In their resolution, Stony Brook student leaders called on the university's administration “to develop a divestment strategy in accordance with the Boycott, Divestments, and Sanctions (BDS) Movement aimed at severing the university’s financial ties with corporations and entities that contribute to or profit from the Israeli military’s operations and the occupation of Palestinian territories.”
Tuesday, university administrators came down against the student resolution.
“To be clear, SBU does not support the BDS movement nor the resolution passed by USG,” the statement said. “While it will have no practical effect on the governance or management of the university, we view the passage of this resolution as regrettable.”
An Oct. 7 attack launched by Hamas militants against Israel killed more than 1,200 people and included the kidnapping of hundreds more. Israel declared war on Hamas in response. Since then, more than 34,000 Palestinians have died in the war, according to the Gaza health ministry.
In response to the war, protests at college campuses across the country have grown increasingly combative, with few signs of slowing. Classes at Columbia University in Manhattan, where some of the most vocal and persistent protests and encampments have taken place, are being held remotely after spikes in reports of antisemitism led to concerns for student safety.
Pro-Palestinian encampments have also been seen at New York University, the University of Michigan, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt, according to multiple news reports.
Stony Brook has seen numerous pro-Palestinian demonstrations since Hamas attacked, but with only limited arrests. On Monday, student government president Devin Lobosco declined to comment on the resolution approved last week.
Jessica Lemons, executive director of Stony Brook's chapter of Hillel, a Jewish campus organization, said in a statement that the resolution was “deeply biased” against Israel.
“Their intent is to promote extreme hatred of Israel and target Jewish students and organizations on our campus — and the effort is indeed creating a more divisive and hateful environment,” Lemons said.
The student government resolution followed a March 26 protest at Stony Brook that resulted in nine people being arrested and charged with disorderly conduct. The protesters marched around campus and then occupied an administrative building using bullhorns and drums. The nine protesters — including seven students, one alumnus and one nonstudent — were arrested after several warnings from campus police that they were violating campus policies and had to leave, university officials said.
Some 450 faculty, students and others subsequently added their names to a letter to school administrators saying the arrests were “criminalizing” protest.
At Hofstra University, the student government passed a resolution March 14 supporting students' right to free speech.
“We commit to the fundamental principle that debate and free expression should not be suppressed or prohibited, regardless of how disagreeable, unwise, offensive, or immoral it may be,” the resolution said. “The university must uphold, permit, and protect these fundamental rights to all of its members equally.”
The resolution acknowledged that any form of protest must stay within the law.
Hofstra student government president Lincoln Anniballi said he supported the measure.
“I wanted to ensure, with the emergence of new student organizations supporting Israel and Palestine, that students understood their rights and that administration would respect them,” he said.
Hofstra officials said Tuesday that the school has a long tradition of supporting robust discussion on important issues of the day.
“There have been no disruptive protests at Hofstra, despite the fact that many students, faculty and staff feel passionately about the current conflict in Israel and Gaza,” officials said, adding that the school has held several events on antisemitism and Islamophobia and violence against women in Gaza.
At Farmingdale State College, officials said students from the Muslim Student Association held a peaceful rally Nov. 28. The student group followed all the school's policies, officials said, “and we recognize their right to demonstrate on campus and provided space, security and the support of our Student Activities Office.”
Stony Brook University's student government passed a resolution late last week calling on the school to boycott and divest itself from Israel. On Tuesday, school administrators criticized the measure as “regrettable.”
The Undergraduate Student Government resolution noted numerous other college student governments have called on their schools to divest from Israel, including Columbia Law, SUNY Binghamton, UCLA and Harvard Law School.
Like Stony Brook, students at other Long Island universities have responded to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war with actions of their own: At Hofstra University in Uniondale, the conflict prompted the student government to pass a resolution in support of the right to free speech on campus. At Farmingdale State College, students supporting Palestinian victims of the war have held at least one demonstration that began and ended peacefully.
Few campus disruptions
And while demonstrations by students at Long Island universities and colleges have so far gone off with only isolated campus disruptions and relatively few arrests, the protesters remain committed to their cause, with only weeks left before graduation ceremonies.
In their resolution, Stony Brook student leaders called on the university's administration “to develop a divestment strategy in accordance with the Boycott, Divestments, and Sanctions (BDS) Movement aimed at severing the university’s financial ties with corporations and entities that contribute to or profit from the Israeli military’s operations and the occupation of Palestinian territories.”
Tuesday, university administrators came down against the student resolution.
“To be clear, SBU does not support the BDS movement nor the resolution passed by USG,” the statement said. “While it will have no practical effect on the governance or management of the university, we view the passage of this resolution as regrettable.”
Colleges respond to war
An Oct. 7 attack launched by Hamas militants against Israel killed more than 1,200 people and included the kidnapping of hundreds more. Israel declared war on Hamas in response. Since then, more than 34,000 Palestinians have died in the war, according to the Gaza health ministry.
In response to the war, protests at college campuses across the country have grown increasingly combative, with few signs of slowing. Classes at Columbia University in Manhattan, where some of the most vocal and persistent protests and encampments have taken place, are being held remotely after spikes in reports of antisemitism led to concerns for student safety.
Pro-Palestinian encampments have also been seen at New York University, the University of Michigan, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt, according to multiple news reports.
Stony Brook students speak out
Stony Brook has seen numerous pro-Palestinian demonstrations since Hamas attacked, but with only limited arrests. On Monday, student government president Devin Lobosco declined to comment on the resolution approved last week.
Jessica Lemons, executive director of Stony Brook's chapter of Hillel, a Jewish campus organization, said in a statement that the resolution was “deeply biased” against Israel.
“Their intent is to promote extreme hatred of Israel and target Jewish students and organizations on our campus — and the effort is indeed creating a more divisive and hateful environment,” Lemons said.
The student government resolution followed a March 26 protest at Stony Brook that resulted in nine people being arrested and charged with disorderly conduct. The protesters marched around campus and then occupied an administrative building using bullhorns and drums. The nine protesters — including seven students, one alumnus and one nonstudent — were arrested after several warnings from campus police that they were violating campus policies and had to leave, university officials said.
'Criminalizing' protests
Some 450 faculty, students and others subsequently added their names to a letter to school administrators saying the arrests were “criminalizing” protest.
At Hofstra University, the student government passed a resolution March 14 supporting students' right to free speech.
“We commit to the fundamental principle that debate and free expression should not be suppressed or prohibited, regardless of how disagreeable, unwise, offensive, or immoral it may be,” the resolution said. “The university must uphold, permit, and protect these fundamental rights to all of its members equally.”
The resolution acknowledged that any form of protest must stay within the law.
Hofstra student government president Lincoln Anniballi said he supported the measure.
“I wanted to ensure, with the emergence of new student organizations supporting Israel and Palestine, that students understood their rights and that administration would respect them,” he said.
Hofstra officials said Tuesday that the school has a long tradition of supporting robust discussion on important issues of the day.
“There have been no disruptive protests at Hofstra, despite the fact that many students, faculty and staff feel passionately about the current conflict in Israel and Gaza,” officials said, adding that the school has held several events on antisemitism and Islamophobia and violence against women in Gaza.
At Farmingdale State College, officials said students from the Muslim Student Association held a peaceful rally Nov. 28. The student group followed all the school's policies, officials said, “and we recognize their right to demonstrate on campus and provided space, security and the support of our Student Activities Office.”
Craig Schneider is a Long Island native and Stony Brook University alumnus. He joined Newsday as a general assignment reporter in January 2018 after 20 years at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
