Columbia U. President Wants to Reduce Monitoring of Foreign Students, Especially Those From China

If the last year has taught us anything, it’s that we should not do this. In fact, we may need to do more.

Campus Reform reports:

Columbia president advocates softer China approach amid questions over foreign giftsThe president of Columbia University is asking Joe Biden to end the monitoring of foreign-born students, especially those who are ethnically Chinese.He characterized such monitoring as “paranoia.”Columbia President Lee Bollinger issued the letter on December 3 as part of a broader statement asking Biden to “End the Trump Administration’s Assault on the International Exchange of Ideas.” In 2019, Bollinger wrote an op-ed in the Washington Post, warning that he would not “start spying” on foreign students.Bollinger argued that the policy of enhanced security is unneeded. While colleges “have an obligation to comply with existing security protocols,” he argued that it was in “fierce conflict with First Amendment freedoms.”That statement from Columbia University’s president came as the Ivy League school reportedly failed to disclose at least $1 million in Chinese government funding of its Confucius Institute, as required by federal law. A Columbia University spokesperson denied this allegation, telling Campus Reform, “the university’s disclosure of funding from foreign sources fully complies with federal requirements for reporting donations.”The Washington Free Beacon cited a Chinese state media report from 2013, which stated that Hanban, the name of the Chinese Communist Party funded Confucius Institute headquarters, “began discussions to establish a Confucius Institute at Columbia in 2008.”

Tags: China, College Insurrection, Columbia University

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