Columbia University students initiated the encampments movement in the spring of 2024.
Posted by Behind the Bastards, Checked
- Sources
- 7 support
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 85%
Behind the BastardsOct 3, 2026
Multiple sources agree that Columbia's Gaza Solidarity Encampment, set up April 17, 2024, was the first of the 2024 campus encampments and that it inspired encampments at other universities. The extraction is faithful to the passage, and no source contradicts the claim.
What was said
… those who aren't caught up, Macklemore was touring with Ed Sheeran not long ago before he was removed from the tour for espousing pro palestine statements on stage at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Specifically, he said, "Free Palestine," a few times, and thanks students at Columbia University for kicking off the encampments movement in spring of 2024. Those students inspired his song "Hinds Hall," the title student protesters gave Columbia's Hamilton Hall, named after Hindra Jab, a 5-year-old who was brutally murdered by the Israeli Defense Forces in Gaza in January of 2024. …
Behind the Bastards · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. Reuters reports that the protest encampment was established at dawn on April 17, 2024 on a Columbia University lawn without university authorization.[1]
Supports. City & State states that Columbia University was the first to see protest encampments in support of Palestine, starting April 17, and that students at other colleges then set up their own encampments.[4]
Supports. FIRE reports that Columbia's encampment was the first, that students at other campuses joined in solidarity, and that encampments were set up on more than 100 campuses; it says it selected Columbia because the encampment protests began there.[5]
Supports. The Columbia Spectator reports that universities across the country pitched their own tents in support of the movement at Columbia, which began April 17, 2024.[6]
Supports. An Amateur Computerist newsletter account says the Columbia encampment triggered similar encampments on many U.S. campuses, and an AP-derived account says the Columbia tents inspired a wave of encampments nationwide.[2][3]
Supports. The Arab Center describes Columbia University students as establishing the first Palestine Solidarity Encampment on April 17, 2024, followed within weeks by encampments at more than 100 universities.[7]
Sources
7 sources: 1 fact-checker, 2 primary, 4 not rated
- 1For some Columbia students, protest encampment is living history lessonreuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 2[PDF] Amateur Computerist newsletter - Columbia Universitycolumbia.edu · primary source · cited for: supports
- 3Need help with the Commons?apicciano.commons.gc.cuny.edu · primary source · cited for: supports
- 4Ask the Experts: How did pro-Palestine protests impact New York's ...cityandstateny.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 52024 student encampment protests - FIRE.orgfire.org · not rated · cited for: supports
- 6Encampments inspired by ‘Gaza Solidarity Encampment’ spring up across the worldcolumbiaspectator.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 7The New University Order: How Repressing the Pro-Palestine Student Movement Has Reshaped US Higher Educationarabcenterdc.org · not rated · cited for: supports
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- Columbia University students occupied university buildings and renamed a hall after Hind Rajab.True
- There were mass protests at Cornell University.True
- A new ruling was issued against a student from the University of Texas Austin regarding Palestine solidarity protests in the week prior to October 3, 2026.True
- There are 'No Kings' protests occurring in cities across the United States that are well-funded and organized.True
- The State of Texas passed a law banning homeless encampments and withholding funding from cities that fail to comply.True