Democracy Dies in Darkness

Conservative judges say they will boycott Columbia University students

The judges accused Columbia of becoming “ground zero for the explosion of student disruptions, anti-semitism, and hatred for diverse viewpoints on campuses.”

By
May 7, 2024 at 6:42 p.m. EDT
Demonstrators march next to the UBS building in New York on Tuesday. (Brendan McDermid/Reuters)
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More than a dozen conservative federal judges are threatening to not hire law clerks who attend Columbia University or its law school starting this fall — an attempt to show the judges’ displeasure over the institution’s handling of pro-Palestinian protests.

In a letter addressed to Minouche Shafik, the embattled president of Columbia University, and Gillian Lester, dean of Columbia Law School, 13 judges nominated by President Donald Trump said the university has become “ground zero for the explosion of student disruptions, anti-semitism, and hatred for diverse viewpoints on campuses across the Nation.”