Student union at Columbia University drops Israel divestment demand

The student worker union at Columbia University on Tuesday gave up on its demand that the university divest from Israel, in a defeat for the protest movement that rocked the Ivy League campus after the start of the war in Gaza.

Student Workers of Columbia-United Auto Workers has been negotiating a contract with the university since last year.

The union had included sweeping demands, including that the university divest from companies in violation of “international law,” a measure targeted at Israel.

The demands led to a stalemate with the university and pressure on the student union from its parent organization, the United Auto Workers, to rein in its activist activity.

The student union dropped a contract article that had demanded divestment on Tuesday, The Columbia Spectator reported.

The move marked a major concession from the union, which had made anti-Israel activism a priority — as have other student unions and student governments in the US.

A union leader confirmed the dropped demand to The Columbia Spectator, acknowledging that the group had to “face the realities.”

The union says it represents more than 3,000 undergraduate and graduate student workers at Columbia.

The student union had previously endorsed the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.

Last year, a Columbia investment committee rejected student protester demands that the university divest from Israel, saying some of the demands were too vague, that there was no consensus on campus, and that it was not financially viable.