Report: Columbia President Won't Enforce Mask Ban

Critics of antisemitic college campus protests have been skeptical of Columbia's concessions to restore its $400 million in federal grants, and now a new report suggested the interim president might not be dealing in good faith with the Trump administration.

Columbia interim President Katrina Armstrong reportedly told the Trump administration the school would enforce a mask ban on pro-Hamas protests on her campus, but The Wall Street Journal reported that she is telling faculty there will be no such ban.

Critics of mask protesters note that their speech, even if unpopular is free, but they should not be permitted to mask up to avoid discipline or accountability for rule-breaking amid their antisemitic protests.

Columbia had been scrambling to claw back its $400 million in federal funds from the Trump administration, which cited the school's "continued inaction in the face of persistent harassment of Jewish students."

And while Israel-supporting Americans and conservatives were skeptical that Columbia would follow through on the promises made Friday to restore institutional control over antisemitic protests and harassment of Jewish students, the Ivy League school's deal with the White House was blasted by liberal professors there as the "biggest crisis since the founding of the republic."

Conservatives noted that Columbia's anti-Israel, pro-Hamas protests go far beyond free speech and into hate speech, as Jewish students have been reporting of harassment by antisemitic protesters, many of whom masked to hide their identities.

Amid the unrest, the Trump administration called for a total ban on masks at campus protests as part of a sweeping list of reforms aimed at cracking down on antisemitism in higher education, reportedly a condition Armstrong vowed to meet when cutting the deal with the administration to turn back on the $400 million spigot.

As the Post reported, Armstrong had no true intention to force antisemitic protesters to unmask. The university did not response to a request for comment.

Jewish activists are renewing calls for the defunding of the liberal-run institution.

"Keffiyah-face-wrapped anonymous figures will continue to roam the campus unabated," the Jews Fight Back group posted on X. "DEFUND THEM. NOW. COMPLETELY. No more negotiating!"

Columbia Jewish & Israeli Students group added that the interim president was more concerned about the school's image rather that rooting out hate speech.

"We appreciate President Armstrong finally clarifying her job – fixing Columbia's PR problem, not its decades-in-the-making Jew-hate problem," the group posted to X.