The University of Columbia has given the demands of the Trump administration, which agrees to implement significant changes in exchange for the restoration of $ 400 million in federal funding. The university’s decision came after its funding by the government earlier this month, citing allegations of antisementism in the campus.
As part of the agreement, Colombia has agreed to ban facial masks in the premises, empower security officers to remove or arrest individuals, and to keep their Middle Eastern, South Asian and African Studies Department under a new officer. The move has been found with criticism from professors and academics, which worry that it sets a dangerous example for government control over educational institutions.
The Trump administration is breaking up in universities, warning at least 60 institutions of potential action on alleged failure to follow the federal civil rights laws related to antisementism. The administration has also targeted the law firms that it claims that Trump’s political opponents have been helped or prosecuted incorrectly.
Columbia’s agreement is fulfilled with disappointment from some quarters, with Professor Jonathan Zimraman, an education historian at the University of Pennsylvania, is called a “tragic day” for the university. According to The Guardian, Zimarman said that the government’s functions had a cold impact on higher education, officials of other universities have failed to speak against the demands of the Trump administration.
“Historically, there is no example,” Zimarman said. “The government is using money as a cuddel to micromanage a university.”
Along with the closure of federal funding that disrupt medical and scientific research in the school, the university’s decision has also been practical results. Researchers have reported to receive notice that their projects have been abolished due to “unprotected antisementic functions”, which includes the development of AI-based equipment so that nurses can be researched on uterine fibroids compared to other early warning systems, compared to deteriorating a patient’s health two days earlier, and designed to improve blood transfusion, children, children, children, children, they were designed to improve blood transfusion. Study.
In response to the controversy, Colombia has hired three dozen special officials with the power to arrest people in the campus and revise their anti-discrimination policies. The university has also announced a plan to fill Israel and Jewish studies and joint posts in the school of international affairs to ensure “excellence and fairness in Middle East studies”.
The memorandum underlining the agreement also states that senior Vice Provosts will review educational programs to ensure that educational offerings are widespread and balanced. This review will begin with the Center for Palestine Studies; Israel and Jewish Studies Institute; Middle East Institute; And other university programs focused on the Middle East.
The new officer will also control the review process to hire non-business employees and approve course changes.
The Colombia Pro-P-Filistinian student has come under investigation after the protest movement, which was pervaded in the campus last year, with a lawn filled with tents and rallies against the US government’s support for Israel.
Trump administration works have been seen as an attempt to control educational institutions and control free speech. The situation has created widespread concern among academics, researchers and students, who worry about the implication of government intervention in university matters.
