FILE — A protest in support of Palestinians at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Mich., Feb. 8, 2024. The president and vice president of the University of Michigan’s student assembly were impeached after they demanded divestment from companies that they said profited from Israel’s war in Gaza, and stopped funding campus activities. (Nic Antaya/The New York Times)
- Student government leaders removed from office after blocking funding for campus groups in protest of Israel-Hamas war.
- Impeachment follows seven-day judicial hearing, finding leaders guilty of dereliction of duty for fulfilling campaign promises.
- University adopts policy of institutional neutrality amid campus polarization over pro-Palestinian activism and tactics.
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Alifa Chowdhury’s successful campaign to lead the University of Michigan’s student government promised just one thing: to block financing for campus groups until the university agreed to divest from companies that Chowdhury said profited from the Israel-Hamas war.
Nine turbulent months later, Chowdhury is out, impeached and removed from office by the student assembly just before midnight Monday.
Impeachment and Removal
Chowdhury’s ouster follows a lopsided impeachment vote in mid-November, which also led to the removal of Elias Atkinson, the body’s vice president and a fellow activist.
In a student judicial hearing that spanned seven days and lasted more than 20 hours, they were found guilty on a single charge of dereliction of duty — the consequence of effectively fulfilling the shutdown their campaign promised.
Related Story: Bethlehem Marks a Second Subdued Christmas During the War in Gaza
Campus Polarization and Controversy
Like the protest encampments at universities across the country, the takeover of Michigan’s student government by pro-Palestinian activists last spring polarized the campus. The activists’ tactics drew objections from students who said their obstructionism went too far and did little to help the Palestinian cause.
The activists saw their movement as a way to shake university officials and students out of what they saw as complacency, and face the plight of Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip.
Limited Impact and Opposition
But like many student protests, the takeover made little headway — and maybe even stirred up opposition. The university, which had long said that it would not divest, adopted a policy of institutional neutrality in October, meaning that it would avoid taking stances on political or social issues that were not directly connected to the school.
Margaret Peterman, a sophomore member of the student assembly who started the impeachment motion, said the president and vice president’s conduct in office and their unwillingness to aid the student body were “inexcusable.”
Related Story: Global Monitor Says Famine Is Weeks Away in North Gaza. A US Diplomat Calls ...
Campaign Promises and Aftermath
The impeached president and vice president, both of whom declined to comment, ran for their positions last spring as part of the Shut It Down Party, with the promise that they would withhold the roughly $1.3 million of annual funding until the university’s regents agreed to total divestment from companies that they said profited from Israel’s war in Gaza. They won their elections handily with a low voter turnout.
With the assembly’s leadership ousted, the speaker of the student assembly, Mario Thaqi, will finish out the presidential term.
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This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
By Halina Bennet/Nic Antaya
c.2024 The New York Times Company
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