Around 30 faculty and staff members protested what they saw as American University’s inaction in response to Trump administration policies in front of the School of International Service building Wednesday afternoon.
The demonstrators announced five demands for administrators:
- “No complicity in white supremacy”
- “No capitulating to authoritarian demands”
- “Stop silencing, stop punishing those who support Palestinian lives”
- “Commit to protecting faculty, staff, students who are government targets, regardless of citizenship status”
- “Defend critical thinking, teaching and free expression at AU”
At one point, demonstrators chanted, “First they came for Mahmoud, tomorrow they come for you.” The protest comes as the Trump administration attempts to deport pro-Palestinian activists and cancel visas.
“This is a group of faculty and the staff who are organized together to fight for the freedom of expression on campus for everyone,” said the group’s spokesperson, Professor Mohammed Abu-Nimer, SIS’s inaugural Abdul Aziz Said chair in international peace and conflict resolution and former director of the Peacebuilding and Development Institute. “That’s why we have the mark X on our masks.”
As the protest began, University President Jonathan Alger wrote to the AU community reiterating the University’s position during federal policy changes and shared resources for students, faculty and staff, including the Feb. 6 guidance on immigration actions on campus.
Abu-Nimer said the protest was not timed to coincide with the email or Alger’s upcoming Friday inauguration ceremony.
The Feb. 6 guidance said the University will not consider or ask for immigration status in admissions or financial aid decisions. It also said the University Police Department would not participate in joint immigration enforcement efforts, unless required by law.
“Consistent with our freedom of expression policy, members of our community often engage in dialogue and inquiry on a wide array of topics,” Elizabeth Deal, the University’s assistant vice president and deputy chief communications officer, said in a statement to The Eagle. “We are actively working on many current public policy issues, both on our campus and in conjunction with many national higher education organizations.”
The demonstrators also demanded more clarity and protections from the University in the wake of President Donald Trump’s Jan. 29 executive order, which said it would “fight anti-Semitism” on college campuses.
“It’s time to acknowledge that executive power is being used to silence dissent through extortion and fear,” the demonstrators chanted.
The U.S. Department of Education opened an investigation into the University last week over the complaint the Brandeis Center filed last year over claims of antisemitism on campus.
Faculty and staff members stood atop a large circular planter as students, staff and tour groups walked past, and chanted, “AU describes itself as global, inclusive and just until justice is inconvenient … It’s time to start fighting, as we know, change can’t wait.”
The demonstrators held signs with sentiments including “No to authoritarians on our campus,” “Fascism = unsafe working conditions” and “AU: protect us all, not just the few.”
Signs also read, “We are …” with the names of foreign-born pro-Palestinian activists, protesters and academics deported by the Trump administration.
The signs named Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil, Columbia doctoral candidate Leqaa Kordia, Columbia PhD candidate Ranjani Srinivasan and Georgetown University postdoctoral fellow Badar Khan Suri.
“What will you choose, AU?” the demonstrators chanted. “Protect us all or protect the few? … Faculty and staff are watching.”
This article was edited by Abigail Hatting, Tyler Davis and Abigail Turner. Copy editing done by Luna Jinks and Olivia Citarella.
