A student at Columbia University wearing zip-tie handcuffs tore up her diploma while on stage Sunday, May 12, as an act of protest and defiance over both United States foreign policy toward Israel and Gaza, and toward the school over its using riot police clearing out the protesters from campus encampments and from Hamilton Hall, the building they took over.
The video that emerged was a live stream video from the commencement ceremony for the Columbia University School of Social Work. In it, the keffiyeh-clad female student marches on stage, showing off her handcuffed wrists by waving them above her head while walking toward the center of the stage to receive her diploma.
The keffiyeh, for reference, is a traditional Arab garment that many of the pro-Palestine protesters have been wearing during their protests, likely both because it is a convenient way to cover their faces and because wearing it instantly shows the connection to Palestine and pro-Palestine protests thanks to its newly acquired reputation. Hers was across her shoulders, hanging on top of her light blue Columbia graduation robe.
In any case, once she made it to the center of stage, she was handed her diploma and immediately ripped it up into pieces, though the zip-tie handcuffs she was wearing made the process a good bit more difficult than she appeared to have expected, so it took a minute. Eventually, however, she was able to rip it up and threw the pieces of the diploma up above her head and onto the floor of the graduation stage.
Then, after tearing up her diploma, she removed her graduation cap and showed the message she had taped to the underside of it to the audience. What the message said could not be discerened from the video, as it wasn’t the right resolution or angle.
Regardless, the incident appeared to be part of a coordinated plan of sorts, as numerous students in the audience were wearing Arab-coded garments like the keffiyeh under or on top of their graduation robes and were wearing the same sort of zip-tie handcuffs she wore. Those handcuffs resemble the way Palestinian prisoners of war are handcuffed. Additionally, other students showed off, and were applauded for, a “Free Palestine” sign.
Watch the diploma-shredding incident here:
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WATCH: Wild Video Shows Columbia University Grad In Handcuffs Ripping Up Diploma
By Will TannerMay 14, 2024Updated:May 14, 2024
A student at Columbia University wearing zip-tie handcuffs tore up her diploma while on stage Sunday, May 12, as an act of protest and defiance over both United States foreign policy toward Israel and Gaza, and toward the school over its using riot police clearing out the protesters from campus encampments and from Hamilton Hall, the building they took over.
The video that emerged was a live stream video from the commencement ceremony for the Columbia University School of Social Work. In it, the keffiyeh-clad female student marches on stage, showing off her handcuffed wrists by waving them above her head while walking toward the center of the stage to receive her diploma.
The keffiyeh, for reference, is a traditional Arab garment that many of the pro-Palestine protesters have been wearing during their protests, likely both because it is a convenient way to cover their faces and because wearing it instantly shows the connection to Palestine and pro-Palestine protests thanks to its newly acquired reputation. Hers was across her shoulders, hanging on top of her light blue Columbia graduation robe.
In any case, once she made it to the center of stage, she was handed her diploma and immediately ripped it up into pieces, though the zip-tie handcuffs she was wearing made the process a good bit more difficult than she appeared to have expected, so it took a minute. Eventually, however, she was able to rip it up and threw the pieces of the diploma up above her head and onto the floor of the graduation stage.
Then, after tearing up her diploma, she removed her graduation cap and showed the message she had taped to the underside of it to the audience. What the message said could not be discerened from the video, as it wasn’t the right resolution or angle.
Regardless, the incident appeared to be part of a coordinated plan of sorts, as numerous students in the audience were wearing Arab-coded garments like the keffiyeh under or on top of their graduation robes and were wearing the same sort of zip-tie handcuffs she wore. Those handcuffs resemble the way Palestinian prisoners of war are handcuffed. Additionally, other students showed off, and were applauded for, a “Free Palestine” sign.
Watch the diploma-shredding incident here:
WATCH: Wild Video Shows Columbia University Grad In Handcuffs Ripping Up Diploma
Here’s another angle:
Unhinged Woke Grad Zip Ties Hands, Rips Up Diploma In Wild Ceremony
Speaking to Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for Columbia University minimized the incident, saying, “Thousands of Columbia graduates and their families have already celebrated at Class Day ceremonies that started on Friday and concluded successfully with virtually no disruption.”
Continuing, that spokesperson added, “We join in the excitement of the remaining graduates who will celebrate their incredible achievements at their own Class Days and graduation events the rest of this week and as they start their next chapter,”
However, the school had been unable to hold a large commencement ceremony for all its students because of “security concerns.” Fox News Digital reports that Ben Chang, a spokesperson for Columbia, said, “Holding a large commencement ceremony on our campus presented security concerns that unfortunately proved insurmountable.” He continued, “Like our students, we are deeply disappointed with the outcome.”
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video
