United States | New term, same balancing act

America’s college heads revise rules for handling campus protests

University leaders have learnt some lessons, but face a tough test this autumn

Pro-Palestinian supporters protest outside Columbia University as students queue to enter the building.
From the river to the degreePhotograph: AP
|New York and Washington, DC

AS SOME STUDENTS shopped for Columbia hoodies and Taylor Swift crochet sets in the university bookshop, and others bought apple-cider doughnuts at a farmers’ market, it almost felt like a normal back-to-school September. But as classes resumed last week at Columbia University, the heart of last spring’s campus unrest over the war in Gaza, it was impossible to avoid renewed pro-Palestinian protests or the changes they have brought.

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This article appeared in the United States section of the print edition under the headline “New term, same balancing act”

From the September 14th 2024 edition

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