Barnard student’s letter calling for accountability amid anti-Israel unrest garners nearly 1,300 signatures
Eliana Birman, who co-wrote the open letter with fellow Barnard student Shoshana Aufzien, says it’s time for the school to acknowledge the antisemitism that is happening on campus.
Barnard College has seen weeks of anti-Israel unrest rock its campus, with students taking over buildings. Eliana Birman, a Jewish student at Barnard, co-wrote a letter with fellow Barnard student Shoshana Aufzien demanding accountability from the college. The open letter has gotten nearly 1,300 signatures in a matter of days.
Birman told Fox News Digital that the letter was meant as a direct response to an email from the Barnard Student Government Association (SGA) condemning the college for calling police to intervene in the unrest.
"My friends and I, especially Shoshana and I, were very frustrated with it because we didn't think that the email from the Barnard student government really represented us, because we honestly felt safer having police on our campus when there was a bomb threat and when we were in an emergency situation," Birman told Fox News Digital. "And we don't think that having the police promise to never come on to campus is for the betterment of the safety of our community."
NYPD cleared pro-Palestinian demonstrators from Barnard College after a group of student protesters occupied Milstein Library on Wednesday night. (?Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images)
The NYPD was called to Barnard College’s campus on March 5 over a bomb threat that came after hours of anti-Israel agitators demonstrating in Milstein Center, Barnard’s library. Multiple agitators were arrested during the operation.
"Anyone who refuses to leave the location is subject to arrest," the NYPD said in an X post confirming its response to the threat. "Please stay away from the area."
Barnard SGA released its letter on Instagram, saying it "strongly condemns" the police presence on campus, saying the school broke "a long-standing promise." When asked about the "promise" mentioned in the letter, Birman said she did not know to what SGA was referring.
The SGA also listed three demands in the letter: first, "amnesty for all students connected to the Milstein Library sit-in"; second, "a good-faith negotiation" with senior staff, SGA and student protesters; and third, the restructuring of Barnard’s disciplinary process to one that involves students as well as faculty.
Anti-Israel activity at Columbia University reached a fever pitch last spring with an infamous encampment on the campus quad. Birman believes that messaging is still having an impact on student agitators. Barnard is an official college of Columbia University, and the institutions have a long-standing relationship.
A "Free Palestine" flag hangs inside a building at Barnard College in NYC. (X/Columbia Jewish & Israeli Students)
?COLUMBIA PROFESSOR SLAMS UNIVERSITY LEADERSHIP AS ANTI-ISRAEL AGITATORS WREAK HAVOC AT BARNARD
"I mean, definitely a lot of it comes from social media, without a doubt. But a lot of it is just repeating what's been heard in the past. What has been repeated since last spring on campus," Birman told Fox News Digital.
Birman told Fox News Digital that, despite the anti-Israel agitators’ demonstrations on campus, she generally felt physically safe until the bomb threat.
"Most of the time, I feel completely safe just walking around the campus with my dog tag, my Star of David, all those things. But when these protests are flaring up, I really do have to be careful about where I go and who I speak to and who I make eye contact with. And I just have to be a little bit more intentional about everything I do," Birman said.
Pro-Palestinian student protesters demonstrate outside Barnard College in New York on Feb. 27, 2025, the morning after pro-Palestinian student protesters stormed a Barnard College building to protest the expulsion last month of two students who interrupted a university class on Israel.? (TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images)
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Overall, Birman is not satisfied with Barnard’s handling of antisemitism on campus. She told Fox News Digital that the college is making "great Fstrides" recently, but it still has room for improvement.
"I think the biggest aspect of that is acknowledging that what's happening is antisemitism. They're acknowledging that it's a form of hate, and they're acknowledging that it's intimidation and that it's creating a sense of unrest on campus. But they haven't really said anything about antisemitism specifically. And I don't really know why," Birman said.
Barnard College did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment on Birman’s letter and the "promise" mentioned in the SGA’s statement.
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