Fierce Protest at Trump Tower: Passionate Support for Mahmoud Khalil to ‘Fight Nazis, Not Students’
A protest erupted at Trump Tower on Thursday as around 150 demonstrators from a progressive Jewish activist group gathered to express opposition to the arrest of Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian activist and former Columbia University student. Khalil, a legal permanent resident of the United States, is facing deportation under the Trump administration, which has spotlighted his involvement in pro-Palestinian demonstrations on Columbia’s campus.
Protesters held banners and chanted slogans like “Free Mahmoud, Free Palestine” and “Fight Nazis, not students,” their voices echoing through the tower’s marble halls. New York Police Department’s Chief of Department John Chell confirmed that 98 protesters were arrested during the demonstration.
The news of Khalil’s arrest last Saturday triggered public outcry, leading to marches and rallies across New York City, including gatherings in Lower Manhattan and on Columbia’s campus. Advocates for free speech and immigrant rights have raised concerns over the arrest’s legality, emphasizing Khalil’s status as a green card holder born in Syria and married to an American citizen. His legal team is contesting the arrest in court.
Inside Trump Tower, protesters unveiled red T-shirts emblazoned with “Not in Our Name” and “Jews Say Stop Arming Israel,” aligning their message against President Trump’s policies. The choice of venue was intentional, recalling Trump’s 2015 presidential campaign announcement in the same building. Josh Dubnau, a 59-year-old professor at Stony Brook University, remarked, “He came down that escalator and immediately started demonizing immigrants. And so this is a symbolic spot where we’re here to say ‘no more.'”
Security at Trump Tower attempted to disrupt the protest by increasing lobby music volume and restricting further entry. Despite warnings from police officers—which led some protesters to disperse—many demonstrators remained, continuing to chant in support of Khalil. Police eventually detained a number of these protesters, guiding them away with zip-tied hands.
The White House has defended Khalil’s arrest, suggesting but not concretely accusing him of organizing campus protests in alignment with Hamas activities. This claim is part of a broader crackdown by the Trump administration on what it describes as antisemitic threats at universities. However, the protesters, largely composed of Jewish individuals, strongly rebut this assertion. Jane Hirschmann, 78, herself a descendant of Holocaust survivors, expressed her disapproval, citing how the administration has “weaponized antisemitism.”
James Schamus, a Columbia professor and protest participant, dismissed the idea of the university being a center of antisemitic behavior. “We all know that if anything, Columbia is a hotbed of students raising their voice and conscience, and in protest against the inhumane policies that this regime is imposing,” Schamus said.
The protest, coordinated by Jewish Voice for Peace, was organized rapidly within a span of 36 hours. Sonya Meyerson-Knox, a spokesperson for the group, articulated a shared historical awareness among the Jewish protestors: “As Jews, we know our history. We know what happens when authoritarian regimes start scapegoating people and start taking away rights; we know exactly where that leads.”
The events at Trump Tower highlight ongoing tensions between free speech, immigrant rights, and governmental authority, encapsulating a dramatic moment in the activism against policies that affect communities both domestic and abroad.
Original Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/13/us/politics/trump-tower-protests-mahmoud-khalil.html
Category : Khalil, Mahmoud (Activist),Trump, Donald J,Jewish Voice for Peace Inc,Columbia University
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Publish Date: 2025-03-14 02:35:00
