HOW BLACK STUDENTS LED 1968 COLUMBIA UNI REVOLT

Student protests are sweeping elite US colleges over Israel’s war on Gaza. Since police broke up demonstrations at Columbia University last week, rallies have spread to other institutions, including Yale, New York and California universities as well as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Students are demanding a ceasefire and want their universities to stop investing in corporations that profit from the conflict. A coalition - made up of Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD), Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace - has formed the ‘Gaza Solidarity Encampment’ movement.

Such action is reminiscent of protests at Columbia University 56 years ago. Back then, there was a revolt against college ties to military research and the construction of a gymnasium in a public park in Harlem, New York. Led by Black students, five campus buildings were barricaded, forcing the university to shut down for a week. They were also protesting against the deeply unpopular Vietnam War, which they believed was immoral and unjustified.

It’s a story that made global headlines and, just like now, police were used to break up the demonstrations. It was seen as a pivotal moment in the campus movement. And those that organised it, have since explained how Black students were instrumental.

In this clip, we hear from those involved in the Columbia protests that broke out on April 23rd, 1968. They were speaking on its 50th anniversary.