Two pieces of news this evening:
1. A week or so ago the interim president of Columbia was removed by the trustees, seemingly to appease the Trump panel she was negotiating with. At the time we were told she would be returning to her position running the medical center. Tonight the news is that she’s been replaced there, will go on sabbatical. This appears to be because of this news story, which is based on a transcript of a deposition by Armstrong. I haven’t yet read the deposition, but the story accuses her of not being aware of the details of incidents of supposed antisemitism at Columbia.
2. Just received the following email from the provost:
Dear members of the Columbia community,
As many of you may have seen in various media reports, the federal government has begun taking action to terminate visa eligibility for international students across the country for alleged incidents including minor traffic violations. Over the past two days, the University has learned that four current international students have had their visas revoked and participation in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program terminated by the federal government. The University was not notified of these status terminations and only became aware of them through proactive daily checks in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) database by our International Students and Scholars Office (ISSO).
ISSO is monitoring the situation closely, notifying students as we become aware of any change in their SEVIS status, and connecting them with resources, including external legal assistance that the University has made available.
ISSO is also standing by to provide support resources to any international student or scholar who may have questions or concerns. ISSO (Morningside/Manhattanville and CUIMC) offers advising appointments in person, via Zoom, or phone (212-854-3587). ISSO advisors are here to support you. The ISSO e-mail (isso@columbia.edu) is continuously monitored. Please immediately notify ISSO of any pressing concerns and an advisor will reach out to set up a same-day appointment.
The University deeply values our international scholars and students. Our international community is essential to driving excellence in scholarship and research at Columbia and we are committed to supporting all members of our community.
Sincerely,
Angela V. Olinto
ProvostProfessor of Astronomy and of Physics
It’s very unclear what is going on here. Were these some of the students being pursued by pro-Israeli groups? People with traffic tickets? Something else? What happens to a student who loses their visa in this way? Will Columbia join any legal actions of the students the way Tufts did?
Update: Just read through the transcript. Very odd, a Trump administration lawyer brow-beating Armstrong about her supposedly insufficient dedication to fighting antisemitism, after she was forced out. Also very odd, the transcript is cut off exactly where it gets interesting, when she is asked “why did you step down as interim president?” Maybe the answer to that didn’t fit the agenda of the person who leaked the deposition.
I have read for years and never commented. I will make this exception so that I can express my appreciation for your work here. I am older and wiser than you. Okay, six months older, but still.
Poor humor aside, best of luck in your future endeavors. You are obviously heading into a collision with the powers that be.
Justin Case,
Thanks, but don’t worry about me, worry about the Columbia administration. They’re in the middle of discovering what a huge mistake they’ve made by trying to appease bullies coming after them with bogus “antisemitism” accusations.
The Armstrong deposition is enlightening to read. It’s pure Joe McCarthy/Roy Cohn bullying with “communism” replaced by “antisemitism”. This is going to go on until some day it is stopped by people being willing to stand up to it. Instead of admitting to a supposed antisemitism problem, what Armstrong should have been saying was: ” Have you no sense of decency, sir? At long last, have you left no sense of decency?”