President Minouche Shafik Gerald Rosberg

202 Low Library 311 Low Library

535 W. 116 St. 535 W. 116 St.
New York, NY 10027 New York, NY 10027
officeofthepresident@columbia.edu gerry.rosberg@columbia.edu

On behalf of the Columbia community and our constituents, we, as elected officials from New
York, urge you to reverse your decision to suspend Jewish Voice for Peace (“JVP”) and Students for
Justice in Palestine (“SJP”) as official student groups through the fall term.
We were disturbed to read Mr. Rosberg’s statement from November 10, 2023, announcing
that JVP and SJP had been suspended for “holding campus events” that had not been approved by the
University, particularly “an unauthorized event Thursday afternoon.” We understand this
“unauthorized event” to be a reference to the peaceful student walk-out and art installation that
occurred on the Low Steps of Columbia University, on November 9, 2023. As the Columbia Spectator
described this event, it involved “hundreds of students” engaging in a “silent gathering,” followed by
student speeches calling for a ceasefire that included remarks from a Palestinian refugee who had been
shot in the leg by an Israeli soldier at the age of 15. The organizers were peacefully demonstrating for
the basic human rights of Palestinians and should not be punished for their speech.
We support the University’s stated desire to maintain an atmosphere that is safe and free of
hate; however, suspending these student groups based on the pretext of “safety” does the opposite.
Unfairly implying that JVP and SJP protesters engaged in “threatening rhetoric and intimidation” at
the November 9th event—a suggestion refuted by multiple sources, including the Columbia
Spectator—aligns with the dangerous narrative that those who express empathy for the lives and dignity
of Palestinians, or who speak about the historical context of the Israeli occupation of Palestine, are
antisemitic or inherently dangerous. This narrative has had harmful consequences at Columbia over
the past few weeks: students have been doxxed, trucks have circled with their names as “Columbia’s
Leading Anti-Semites,” and some students who expressed solidarity with the Palestinians—or were
merely affiliated with student groups who have expressed such viewpoints—have had offers of
employment withdrawn by employers.
We urge you to listen not only to us, but also to your own faculty. On October 30th, over one
hundred members of Columbia's faculty wrote you an open letter rightly warning against
“unacceptable” attempts “to chill otherwise protected speech on campus.” They reminded you to
uphold your vision of the institution “as a beacon for ‘fostering critical thinking and opening minds to
different points of view.’” As critical scholars, they urged you to leave room for “robust inquiry about
the most challenging matters of our time,” and specifically warned against attempts to unfairly label
your students as violent, disruptive, or antisemitic for expressing empathy for the lives and dignity of
Palestinians.
Reflecting deep concerns from the Columbia community and our constituents, we urge you to
reverse the suspension of the SJP and JVP groups.

Sincerely,

Hon. Jamaal Bowman Hon. Nydia M. Velázquez Hon. Alexandria

Ocasio-Cortez

Senator Kristen Gonzalez Senator Jabari Brisport Senator Julia Salazar

Class of ’18

Senator Robert Jackson Assembly Member Zohran Assembly Member Phara

Mamdani Soffrant Forrest

Assembly Member Harvey Assembly Member Sarahana

Assembly Member Marcela
Epstein Shrestha
Mitaynes
Assembly Member Emily Assembly Member Jessica Council Member Alexa Avilés
Gallagher González-Rojas Class of ’95

Council Member
Council Member Shahana Hanif
Council Member Tiffany Cabán Jennifer Gutiérrez

Council Member Sandy Nurse Council Member Kristin

Council Member
Charles Barron Richardson Jordan