The College Fix

UPDATED

Student group affirms use of violence to advocate for Palestinian cause

As the 2024-25 school year begins, the People’s Solidarity Coalition at New York University signaled that pro-Palestinian protests will continue on college campuses, even in cases of “armed struggle.”

During the week of July 22, the People’s Solidarity Coalition, formerly known as Palestine Solidarity Committee, released a Statement of Intention declaring that they will continue supporting campus efforts to back Palestine.

“The movement for people’s liberation is not a monolith; we recognize and welcome the diversity of tactics that lead to victory. Resistance takes many forms, including armed struggle, non-violent direct action, cultural production, and world building,” the statement read.

However, their stance has faced criticism from university officials. NYU spokesperson John Beckman denounced the group’s willingness to use violence in support of Palestine, calling it “deplorable” in a news release.

The College Fix contacted Beckman, NYU media affairs, and the PSC, none of whom responded in the last week to discuss topics such as defining “armed struggle” on college campuses.

“This university has zero tolerance for the use of violence, and is shocked that any members of our campus community would endorse ‘armed struggle’ as a ‘tactic,’” Beckman stated in the news release.

“We call upon the People’s Solidarity Coalition to immediately retract their statement and repudiate it, as well as related conduct, such as vandalism, destruction of property, and threats and intimidation,” he stated.

He added that NYU intends to retaliate against any kind of violence by involving city and campus law enforcement and utilizing university disciplinary measures.

Beckman’s comments led the coalition to briefly withdraw their statement but then repost it as a link in their Instagram bio for public access.

MORE: NYU forces anti-Israel protesters to write essays as punishment

NYU’s independent student newspaper, Washington Square News, spoke to an anonymous representative from the PSC who called “armed struggle” an “essential aspect of political education” that represents “the long tradition of oppressed people taking up arms against their oppressors as a way to secure their freedoms.”

The representative also claimed that the university misunderstood the PSC’s “armed struggle” statement, that Beckman’s statement about shutting down violence is “hypocritical,” and “if Beckman condemns our statement, we condemn his,” according to WSN.

The PSC’s Statement of Intention notes that as a “People’s Front,” they aim to “attack” NYU in hopes of destroying the university’s participation in current imperial conflicts, genocide, and settler-colonial occupation.

The coalition claims that “NYU is complicit in the Zionist genocide in Palestine and in maintaining the occupation of the Palestinian people and oppressed people of the world.”

“When we take up the struggle against the Zionist entity, we take on the global fight against U.S. imperialism and its violences,” the group’s Statement of Intention reads.

The PSC describes itself as a “coalition of undergraduate, graduate, faculty, and alumni groups, clubs, organizations and individuals who share a common vision of liberation for all.”

It consists of 44 organizations, “ranging from the Faculty & Staff for Justice in Palestine and Jews Against Zionism to cultural and academic groups like the NYU Consortium Medievalists, the Climate Care Collective, and the Stonewall Policy Alliance,” according to The Free Press.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict was the driving force behind the formation of the PSC. Although the conflict between Hamas and Israel has been ongoing since 1948, Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, prompted universities across the nation to form unions and stage protests as both sides attacked the other and captured hostages.

Two pro-Palestine encampments at NYU were cleared by NYPD last semester, resulting in numerous arrests. The university made it clear that they will continue to discipline participating students, alumni, and faculty.

In a statement to The College Fix after publication, NYU said the school does not officially recognize the PSC as a student group and is challenging their use of NYU’s name.

MORE: Institutional neutrality key to stymying aggressive anti-Israel campus protests

IMAGE: Al Jazeera English/Youtube

Editor’s note: This post has been updated to clarify that NYU is unaffiliated with the PSC.

Like The College Fix on Facebook / Follow us on Twitter