The more things change, the more they stay the same: Columbia University’s Trump-imposed reforms include a new masking policy that requires protesters to show their face or hand over ID. Students returned from spring break on Monday and put the new rule to the test.
Dozens of activists, our Jessica Costescu and Jessica Schwalb report, donned masks to protest the policy changes. They mocked Columbia’s medical exemption for masks before doing so, with one anti-Israel group telling members, “PROTECT YOURSELF AND YOUR COMMUNITY. … We recommend wearing a KN95, KF-94, or N95 mask for the most protection.” Then they marched around campus unimpeded.
The demonstration remained relatively tame by Columbia standards. Still, it calls into question the school’s desire and willingness to enforce the new rules. When will Columbia security officials actually ask masked demonstrators to identify themselves? We asked Columbia, and a school…
