Gaza protests prompted Columbia University President Minouche Shafik to leave her position just after a year.
According to Al Jazeera, Shafik, who was widely criticized by the protestors and the House of Republicans over Gaza protests on the Manhattan campus, announced her resignation on Wednesday, August 14.
In an email to the university community, she wrote, “Over the summer, I have been able to reflect and have decided that my moving on at this point would best enable Columbia to traverse the challenges ahead.”
The former president further added, “I am making this announcement now so that new leadership can be in place before the new term begins. It has also been a period of turmoil where it has been difficult to overcome divergent views across our community.”
Moreover, students of the New York City campus of Columbia University began to protest against the Israeli war on Gaza in April.
After the protest gained momentum, Shafik was summoned by the congressional committee to answer over her failure to protect students and staff from anti-Semitism.
A day later, she took help from the New York police against the protestors, resulting in the arrest of over 100 people.
This triggered outrage from the protestors and academics, calling for her resignation.
Additionally, the student protestors group welcomed Shafik's resignation, saying, “After months of chanting ‘Minouche Shafik, you can’t hide,’ she finally got the memo.”
The Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine added, “To be clear, any future president who does not pay heed to the Columbia student body’s overwhelming demand for divestment will end up exactly as President Shafik did."
