Columbia University anti-Israel activists mock Veterans Day, proclaim a ‘Martyrs Day’ instead
‘Veterans Day (November 11) is an American holiday to honor the patriotism, love of country, and sacrifice of veterans. THIS WON’T STAND!’ the group wrote.
The activists added that ‘[t]he American war machine should not be honored for the horrors unleashed on others.’
A Columbia University anti-Israel student group celebrated a “Martyrs Day” on Monday in an attempt to replace Veterans Day.
In an Instagram post on Saturday, Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD) announced: “Veterans Day (November 11) is an American holiday to honor the patriotism, love of country, and sacrifice of veterans. THIS WON’T STAND!”
The group announced that “[w]e reject this holiday and refuse to celebrate it,” adding that “[t]he American war machine should not be honored for the horrors unleashed on others” and stating that it will instead “celebrate Martyrs Day in honor of those martyred by the Israel-US war machine.”
[RELATED: Columbia fundraising falls by nearly 30% following pro-Palestine protests]
CUAD advertised that it is “reclaiming Veterans Day for our martyrs” and invited followers to “honor the martyrs of this genocide” at the school on Monday, calling on them to attend to “read a martyr’s story and plant a poppy in their memory.”
The post concluded with a demand for Columbia to divest from companies that have ties to Israel such as Microsoft and Airbnb, which CUAD accuses of being “directly involved in Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine responsible for the displacement and death of millions of Palestinians.”
CUAD’s attack on Veterans Day provoked opposition among certain members of the community, with some veterans at Columbia expressing anger at the group’s actions.
Sam Nahins, an Air Force veteran and student at the Ivy League university, said: “That post really shook the hornet’s nest,” and added: “They’ve never hid their disdain for veterans. But now it’s really out in the open,” according to the New York Post.
“Last year when students and faculty members were running around dressing up as jihadists and screaming ‘Death to America,’ ‘Death to Western civilization,’ death to everything but their cause, I had friends get called infidels, and murderers and baby-killers,” he continued.
CUAD has been responsible for organizing many other anti-Israel events and issuing other messages against the Jewish state.
In October, the group posted a Substack article glorifying the late Hassan Nasrallah, former leader of the Lebanese terrorist group, Hezbollah, and quoting Communist dictators Vladimir Ledin and Mao Zedong.
Campus Reform contacted Columbia University and Columbia University Apartheid Divest for comment. This story will be updated accordingly.
