A coalition representing anti-Israel groups at Columbia University walked back an apology it made on behalf of a student who said “Zionists” do not deserve to live.
Columbia University banned Khymani James from being on campus following the junior’s remarks on a livestream in April, to which he followed up with a lawsuit against the institution in September, the Columbia Spectator reported. In the same statement walking back the apology, Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD) also “echoed” Fidel Castro and Franz Fanon, noting that violence is the only “path forward.”
The group alleged in statement that James faced “anti-blackness” and “queerphobia” from “neo-liberals, neo-liberal media and fascists” following the original apology.
“Be grateful that I’m not just going out and murdering Zionists. I’ve never hurt anyone in my life, and I hope to keep it that way,” James said in the original livestream video.
“Zionists, they don’t deserve to live comfortably, let alone Zionists don’t deserve to live,” James said. “The same way we are very comfortable accepting Nazis don’t deserve to live, fascists don’t deserve to live.”
The coalition mirrored “decolonial” individuals like Castro and Fanon by writing “in the face of violence from the oppressor equipped with the most lethal military force on the planet, where you’ve exhausted all peaceful means of resolution, violence is the only path forward.” (RELATED: Elite University ‘Giving Day’ Donations Plummet Following Rise Of Anti-Israel Protests)
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators march through the Columbia University campus to mark one year of the war between Hamas and Israel in New York City on October 7, 2024. (Photo by KENA BETANCUR/AFP via Getty Images)
The institution used its conduct policy to violate, harass and deny James of his “Tedeschi Rights,” which were established in the 1980 Tedeschi v. Wagner College case, the lawsuit alleges.
The university created and continues to have a hostile environment that allegedly “deprives” James of educational opportunities and programs, the lawsuit argues. Columbia repeatedly failed to take action addressing supposed harassment against James, the suit goes on to claim.
“Long live Palestine, long live the Intifada, and long live the resistance,” the statement’s final line reads.
Columbia University did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundations request for comment. Columbia CUAD was unable to be reached for comment.
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