Palestinian Refugee Camp to Columbia Graduation: Mohsen Mahdawi's Journey

From Refugee Camp to Columbia

• 💡 Mohsen Mahdawi, a Palestinian student from the Al Farah refugee camp in the West Bank, graduated from Columbia University's School of General Studies.
• 🚀 His journey to graduation was marked by significant challenges, including detention by federal agents after a naturalization interview.
• 🎓 Mahdawi expressed a mix of joy and sadness, reflecting on his personal achievement, the absence of his uncle, his family's inability to attend, and the lack of universities in Gaza.

Legal Battles and Freedom of Speech

• ⚖️ A federal judge, Jeffrey Crawford, ordered Mahdawi's release on bail, comparing immigrant student detentions to the Red Scare and Palmer Raids.
• 🗣️ The judge permitted Mahdawi to travel to New York for educational purposes, including attending his graduation, and to freely engage in activities like meeting officials and speaking with the press.
• ✊ Mahdawi felt honored and humbled by the standing ovation at his graduation, viewing it as a recognition of the inner child who suffered and a stand for justice, peace, human rights, and international law.

University Values and Student Activism

• 🏛️ Mahdawi criticized Columbia University's actions, such as suspending and expelling students for protesting, stating it betrays values like justice, education, and peace.
• 📢 He emphasized that student voices are more powerful than university funding and that universities should align with international law and human rights.
• 🎓 Despite facing obstacles with the immigration system, federal justice system, and lack of university scholarship, Mahdawi plans to attend Columbia's School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) to study international affairs, diplomacy, security, conflict resolution, and peacemaking.

Valedictorian's Address and Professor's Concerns

• 🎤 The valedictorian, Peter Gorman, highlighted that this graduating class was reduced by suspension and expulsion for political protest for the first time since 1968 and 1936, respectively.
• 🇵🇸 Palestinian American student activist Mariam Alwan also graduated, expressing guilt that many others, including those killed, could not share the moment.
• 👩‍🏫 Columbia professors held a vigil for detained students like Mahmood Khalil, expressing concerns about university self-governance, faculty involvement in leadership choices, and the protection of student and scholar protest rights.