BELOW SUPERNAV drop zone ⇩

‘Someone is funding’ college protests: Rep. Virginia Foxx

  • Pro-Palestinian protests are growing on college campuses
  • GOP Rep. Foxx says protests funded and orchestrated by outside groups
  • Campuses struggling to balance free speech with order and inclusivity

MAIN AREA TOP drop zone ⇩

MAIN AREA TOP drop zone ⇩

ovp test

mLife Diagnostics LLC: Oral Fluid Drug Testing

Male shot by female at Shreveport apartment

Class to create biodiverse backyard

Rules for outbursts at Caddo School Board Meeting

maylen

https://digital-stage.newsnationnow.com/

AUTO TEST CUSTOM HTML 20241114185800

AUTO TEST CUSTOM HTML 20241115200405

AUTO TEST CUSTOM HTML 20241118165728

AUTO TEST CUSTOM HTML 20241118184948

(NewsNation) — Several U.S. universities took strident measures this week to address pro-Palestinian student protests, including arresting demonstrators, moving classes online and closing campuses.

U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., who chairs the House Committee on Education and Labor, alleged Tuesday on NewsNation’s “Elizabeth Vargas Reports” that the protests are being funded and organized by outsiders.

“It’s obvious that someone is funding them,” Foxx said. “They were well prepared.”

At Columbia University in New York, officials canceled in-person classes for the rest of the semester after more than 100 protesters were arrested last week during an encampment on the campus. The university’s president called in police to make the arrests, but that did not stop the demonstrations.

Foxx said students waving Palestinian flags and chanting “We are Hamas” shows “they have minds of mush” and “don’t know what they’re saying.” She called on university leaders to take strong action, expelling any students who break the law.

“Having a strong hand and doing the right thing is what these presidents need to be doing,” Foxx told Vargas. “They need to get spines, and they need to show the students what’s right and what’s wrong.”

In New York City, Mayor Eric Adams also questioned who was organizing the protests, noting the tents used by demonstrators all looked alike.

The protests have left many campuses struggling over how to balance students’ free speech rights with maintaining order and inclusivity.

The protests have pitted students against one another, with pro-Palestinian students demanding that their schools condemn Israel’s assault on Gaza and divest from companies that sell weapons to Israel.

Some Jewish students, meanwhile, say much of the criticism of Israel has veered into antisemitism and made them feel unsafe, and they point out that Hamas is still holding hostages taken during the group’s Oct. 7 attack.

The protest encampment sprung up at Columbia on Wednesday, the same day its president faced bruising criticism at a congressional hearing from Republicans who said she hadn’t done enough to fight antisemitism. Two other Ivy League presidents resigned months ago following widely criticized testimony they gave to the same committee.

What is behind the protests?

Protests have been taking place across the world since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war, which erupted after Hamas and Islamic Jihad, two militant groups backed by Iran, carried out a devastating cross-border attack Oct. 7 that killed 1,200 people in Israel and resulted in the kidnapping of 250 others.

An Israeli offensive in Gaza has caused widespread devastation and killed more than 34,000 people, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.

American officials and Israeli leaders are striving to discourage Iran and other neighboring countries from further escalating tensions in the region. However, the Palestinian issue is a powder keg, igniting anger and frustration across Arab nations and among the Arab populace who believe that the Palestinians have been denied the promised two-state solution outlined in the Oslo Accords decades ago.   

Hamas said its attack was in response to the continued Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories, the blockade of the Gaza Strip, the expansion of illegal Israeli settlements, threats to the status of the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the plight of Palestinian refugees and prisoners. 

On the Israeli side, there’s immense anger and a strong desire to dismantle Hamas, a goal Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is committed to achieving through the military offensive.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Elizabeth Vargas Reports

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed

 

MAIN AREA MIDDLE drop zone ⇩

Trending on NewsNation

AUTO TEST CUSTOM HTML 20241119133138

MAIN AREA BOTTOM drop zone ⇩

tt

KC Chiefs parade shooting: 1 dead, 21 shot including 9 kids | Morning in America

Witness of Chiefs parade shooting describes suspect | Banfield

Kansas City Chiefs parade shooting: Mom of 2 dead, over 20 shot | Banfield

WWE star Ashley Massaro 'threatened' by board to keep quiet about alleged rape: Friend | Banfield

Friend of WWE star: Ashley Massaro 'spent hours' sobbing after alleged rape | Banfield

Clear

la

53°F Clear Feels like 53°
Wind
0 mph ENE
Humidity
68%
Sunrise
Sunset

Tonight

A few passing clouds. Low 46F. Winds light and variable.
46°F A few passing clouds. Low 46F. Winds light and variable.
Wind
1 mph NNE
Precip
2%
Sunset
Moon Phase
Waning Gibbous