Amira McKee
@_amiramckee
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head of investigations @columbiaspec | @djnf ’24 @thecurrentga | @ameja & @nlgja | tips? amira.mckee @gmail .com | Signal: amira.25
New York, NY
Joined March 2019
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Pinned Tweet
NYPD SWEEPS OCCUPIED HAMILTON HALL, ARRESTS DOZENS
NYPD has forced hundreds of students and journalists off of campus, though many remain inside, now unable to leave.
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One of the many experiences of me and my fellow
@ColumbiaSpec
reporters when hundreds of NYPD officers swept Columbia’s campus on Tuesday night.
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“When asked to characterize the protests, Chief John Chell said the ‘clear and present danger’ was identified by Columbia, not by the NYPD. The NYPD reported no violence or injuries associated with the ‘Gaza Solidarity Encampment.’”
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So excited to be part of
@djnf
class of ’24!
This summer, I’m headed to Savannah to work as a fellow
@thecurrentga
, a
@ProPublica
local reporting network partner! I’ll be focusing on investigative reporting surrounding the burgeoning Hyundai Metaplant. 🕵🏻♀️
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"It’s going to be one of those moments where people ask, 'Where were you when …?' And we’re all going to have to have an answer."
An oral history of protest and discipline at Columbia in the words of those living it.
Read
@ColumbiaSpec
and
@NYMag
.
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BREAKING: DOZENS OF PROTESTERS OCCUPY HAMILTON HALL
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NEW: The DA is moving to drop the felony hate crime case against the former student accused of assaulting an Israeli student.
The DA says video evidence did not support the allegation that she intentionally struck him with a stick.
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Columbia students merge with hundreds of protesters for ‘Citywide Day of Rage for Gaza’
NYPD arrested 27 demonstrators marching in the street—throwing multiple face-first to the ground before holding them down and zip-tying their wrists behind their back
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No question of journalist safety can be discussed in this moment without acknowledging the over 140 journalists and media workers, the vast majority Palestinian, killed in Gaza since Oct. 7. What we experienced that night was a minute example of the supression of free press.
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BREAKING: Following last night's Hamilton Hall occupation, essential personnel and those living in on-campus housing—primarily first years and sophomores—will be the only students with access to campus.
Columbia limited access to its Morningside campus to students residing in on-campus residence halls and essential personnel on Tuesday. The conditions will remain “until circumstances allow otherwise,” an email announcing the restrictions reads.
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LATEST: Columbia’s tax exemptions exceed its annual community investment by millions. West Harlem residents want more. (🧵)
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Protesters covered security cameras inside of the building with trash bags and tape. According to a source in the building, at least three Facilities workers remained inside as of 1 a.m. Several individuals, including the workers, left the building around 1:10 a.m..
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DEVELOPING: Hundreds picket around South Lawn as suspension deadline expires
Student demonstrators say the picket will last "as long as it takes."
w/
@ishabanerjee20
,
@clairecleary_
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Fittingly, tonight marks both the second mass arrest on Columbia’s campus in two weeks and the 56th anniversary of the arrests of the 1968 protests—what was previously the only mass arrest on campus in over a half century.
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Spectator reporters covered yesterday’s “United for Israel March” outside of Columbia’s gates. Here’s what we saw.
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Upon entry, protesters quickly threw down their belongings and climbed the stairs, bringing down tables and chairs to block the doors from the inside. The building was locked down in less than five minutes and protesters allowed no one to enter.
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DEVELOPING: The University negotiation deadline has expired, and anticipation is growing over potential NYPD response. Protesters have left the negotiation table, and NYPD and Columbia declined to comment on whether police were authorized to enter campus.
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The City Council overwhelmingly passed legislation to give itself greater oversight of top mayoral appointments with a veto-proof 46:4 vote— the latest move in a power struggle with Mayor Eric Adams.
w/
@JCColtin
and Carolina Baldin
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BREAKING: NYPD ENTERS AS PROTESTERS BRACE FOR ARREST
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After 3 nights of sleeping on tarps, protesters re-erected tents at the “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” for the first time since the NYPD sweep. Columbia said students will be 'identified and subjected to disciplinary action’ for violating University policy.
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In the most competitive election the district’s seen in over two decades,
@manuelas957
and I spoke with the four candidates vying for the 69th Assembly seat.
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Today's the day! We're only hours out from the conclusive primary of the most competitive race District 69 has seen in over two decades.
Spectator spoke to the five candidates on tonight's ballot vying for Rep. Danny O'Donnell's seat.
w/
@manuelas957
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UPDATE: One day after the NYPD sweep on Columbia’s campus, all 108 arrested protesters have been released from custody. Two affiliates face charges for obstructing governmental administration and trespassing.
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One protester lay on the ground in front of Hamilton unmoving as police officers stood over them. Three officers then carried the individual away from the building. Another protester was thrown down the stairs in front of Hamilton, according to videos reviewed by Spectator.
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In the largest bribery inditement in DOJ history, two former Grant Houses supers are among 70 NYCHA employees facing federal charges for allegedly accepting $2 million in bribes in exchange for “no-bid” contracts.
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"Much has changed since that fateful Sunday morning, but some things still feel eerily familiar."
Honored to have contributed to this piece for the
@bronxtimes
.
On the first anniversary of one of the deadliest fires in NYC history, the Bronx Times revisited the Twin Parks North West building to recount the tragedy through the eyes of some of its survivors, first responders and witnesses. Our piece is live now:
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Dozens of protesters occupied Hamilton Hall at 12:30 a.m. Tuesday morning, moving metal gates to barricade the doors, blocking entrances with wooden tables and chairs, and zip-tying doors shut. According to a source in the building, three facilities workers remain inside.
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In the two hours following Shafik’s authorization, NYPD cleared Columbia’s campus—demanding students and journalists leave or face arrest. Now, on Shafik’s request, NYPD will remain on campus until May 17.
It’s unclear if students will be allowed to enter campus moving forward.
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The NYPD arrested protesters outside occupied Hamilton Hall at around 9:30 p.m. on Tuesday evening. One contingent of officers approached the admissions office entrance, where they pushed protesters to the ground and slammed them with barricades.
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w/
@tomas_imparato
&
@_mehrkaur
: Though Mayor Adams’ has touted B-HEARD as a success, allocating an additional $55 million to the project in the 2023 fiscal budget, EMT and mental health workers have replaced police in only a limited number of crises since its launch.
A year after its West Harlem pilot, the city’s mental health crisis response program is undertaking its newest expansion. Community members have questioned its efficacy, noting that the majority of crisis calls are still answered by NYPD.
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BREAKING: Following "constructive dialogue," Columbia will continue conversations with student protesters for the next 48 hours, extending the previous midnight negotiation deadline, a spokesperson wrote in a 3:03 a.m. comment to
@ColumbiaSpec
.
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The occupation came nearly two weeks after President Shafik authorized the NYPD to sweep the “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” on April 18, leading to the largest mass arrest on campus since 1968, when the NYPD arrested over 80 inside of occupied Hamilton Hall and over 700 students.
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“Without assurances of good faith bargaining and protections for nonviolent protestors against police and military violence, we will not be returning to the table,” Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia student on the CUAD negotiating team, wrote in a public statement at around midnight.
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A Facilities worker who was in the building exited the building at around 12:40 a.m., after shouting at the protesters occupying the Hamilton lobby to let him go. As he left Hamilton, he hit someone’s camera and yelled at the crowd, “They held me hostage.”
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From the Hamilton balcony, protesters unfurled another banner at around 1:40 a.m., reading “Hind’s Hall.” The name refers to Hind Rajab, a six-year-old Palestinian who was killed by the Israeli military in Gaza on Jan. 29.
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31 West Harlem buildings are under fire-related evacuation, displacing the residents of 118 local apartments. In this piece, a culmination of three-months of reporting, tenant leaders and advocates describe the tumultuous process of returning home.
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Hundreds of officers in riot gear entered through the Carmen gates at around, first surrounding the “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” before breaking off toward the occupied Hamilton Hall—dubbed “Hind’s Hall” by protesters.
The NYPD found no students remaining in the encampment.
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At Hamilton Hall, NYPD both broke through the barriers established last night and entered the building via an emergency ladder and window. Though officers cleared South campus, students watched as dozens of protesters were marched off campus in zip-tie handcuffs.
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As the window of the rightmost door of Hamilton broke, dozens more protesters formed a human chain outside of Hamilton. Protesters continued to set up their Hamilton encampment while dozens more flooded over to the front of the building, picketing around South Lawn and chanting.
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In the 20 years since its founding,
@AliForneyCenter
has transformed from a “ragtag group of activists” in a Harlem church basement to the largest organization aiding LGBTQ homeless youth in the U.S. In 2022, leaders chart the center’s path forward.
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District 7 Councilman
@CMShaunAbreu
just introduced a resolution calling on
@NYCSchools
to develop a curriculum on responsible usage of generative AI like ChatGPT in the city’s schools, via
@ishabanerjee20
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As Manhattan faces a crisis of affordability, Borough President Levine's "Housing Manhattanites" report advises that 171 sites be redeveloped to create 73,000 new homes. Columbia—the only private owner identified by name in the 88-page plan—owns five such sites.
Columbia holds five “vacant or underutilized” properties prime for inclusive housing development according to Borough President Mark Levine’s “Housing Manhattanites” plan released Tuesday, which proposes the creation of 73,000 new homes in Manhattan.
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Daniel O’Donnell, a New York State Assembly member who has represented District 69 for over two decades, will have 60 days to undergo retraining after the Committee on Ethics and Guidance concluded he made statements in violation of anti-harassment policy.
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Victor Edwards is succeeding Barry Weinberg as Chair of West Harlem’s Community Board 9. In his two-year term, Edwards tells me he plans to double down on
@CB9Manhattan
's key priorities: affordable housing, youth education, and resident quality of life.
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Protesters covered cameras inside of the building with trash bags and tape. According to a source in the building, at least three Facilities workers remained inside at 1 a.m. Several individuals, including the workers, exited at around 1:10 am after protesters removed barricades.
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Brilliant graphic and data analysis by
@jennyzxye
and gorgeous illustration by Katya Reichert. Shoutout to
@androo_park
for the incredible web layout! [7/7]
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At around 1:28 am, protesters draped a Palestinian flag from a window on the third floor. Minutes later, protesters used newspapers to cover the windows on the doors. Protesters unfurled a banner from the leftmost side of Hamilton, reading “Gaza Calls Columbia Falls,” at 1:38 am.
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@adidanic
and Kevin Medina created stunning graphics to visualize the density, cause, and trends in West Harlem fire displacement
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Columbia’s nearly $26 million purchase of The Maranamay last year sparked controversy surrounding the building’s potential use. Despite MHCC pushes for the inclusion of non affiliated housing, 611 W. 112th “will be designed and used for undergraduate housing.”
A Jan. 20 memo obtained by Spectator from Columbia’s Office of Government and Community Affairs and Facilities and Operations alerted residents of neighboring apartments that 611 W. 112th Street “will be designed and used for undergraduate housing.”
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Outside the rightmost set of doors, protesters stacked two metal tables originally sitting outside Hartley Hall on top of each other and tied them to the doors with yellow rope and zip ties. Protesters remained inside with extra wooden chairs to blockade the doors.
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Read the full story with
@esha_karam
,
@SheaVance22
,
@manuelas957
,
@clairecleary_
, and Sarah Huddleston
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Multiple incidents of harassment occurred at the protest—described in promotional material as a “unity march of Christians and Jews,”—targeting primarily counter protesters and individuals observing from within campus gates, according to
@ColumbiaSpec
video and student testimony.
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When beloved son and brother Stephen Nashchen passed from COVID-19, his family was entitled to $9K in FEMA funeral reimbursement. Two years and countless dead ends later, Stephen’s family saw no financial relief — until 7 On Your Side got involved.
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A CUAD 2:07 a.m. press release, identified the protesters occupying Hamilton as an “autonomous group” “Protestors have voiced their intention to remain at Hind’s Hall until Columbia concedes to CUAD’s three demands: divestment, financial transparency, and amnesty,” CUAD wrote.
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Soon after the first arrests dozens established a jail support a few blocks from One Police Plaza. The group at continued to rally for those arrested during the march long after the protest had dispersed, meeting each demonstrator with cheers as they were released from custody.
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The NYPD arrested at least ten people on Madison, pinning several to the ground as they zip-tied their hands behind their backs. One protester was dragged on the asphalt by their backpack while two others were thrown onto a car before being zip-tied. Photo by Gabby Gregor Splaver
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Protesters continued to march through the UES, only blocks from the 2024 Met Gala. At around 7:50 p.m., the group marched into Central Park, then stayed between 68th and 77th Street until 9 p.m., when the group marched downtown to 59th Street and Fifth Avenue before dispersing.
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Upon entry, protesters quickly threw down their belongings and climbed the stairs, bringing down tables and chairs to block the doors from the inside. The building was locked down in less than five minutes and protesters allowed no one to enter.
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After an evidence review, the district attorney’s office wrote in a statement to Spectator that video of the incident instead captures the GS student reaching and grabbing as he walked in her direction and her moving away while waving what appears to be a dowel.
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The student body got word of the deadline only hours ago and that if an agreement was not reached, Shafik would consider “alternative options for clearing the West Lawn and restoring calm to campus so that students can complete the term and graduate.”
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The former student accepted the DA’s offer last month to drop her charges if she goes 6 months without rearrest. The deal was contingent on a public apology and completion of Manhattan Justice Opportunities sessions—both of which are requirements she has already fulfilled.
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The initial felony hate crime charges brought by the district attorney’s office in October alleged that she shoved and struck the Israeli student with “a hard wooden object which appeared to be a broomstick,” causing a “laceration to his finger and a fracture to his finger.”
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“For all the community space they’ve taken, I don’t think they’ve given back enough,” CB9 Chair Victor Edwards told me. “We need to monitor it because before you know it, time will run out and what will we have to show for it?" [6/7]
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Read the full story, w/ Sarah Huddleston and Gabby Gregor Splaver.
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The MHCC is hosting an online meeting on Feb. 28 at 7 p.m. to discuss The Maranamay, Columbia’s plans, and alternative visions for 611 W. 112th Street.
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Dozens of pro-Palestinian protesters rallied outside the Amsterdam gates in a “Citywide Day of Rage for Gaza” protest at around 4 p.m on Monday, before traveling over 50 blocks downtown to join hundreds in a demonstration that lasted over six hours. Photo by Gabby Gregor Splaver
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Following the chants, the protesters announced that they would occupy Hamilton until “Columbia meets every one of our demands.”
At around 1:56 a.m., protesters draped another banner from the top of the building’s facade that read “Intifada.”
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Columbia receives $170 million in annual property tax exemptions, outpacing its CBA and local infrastructure investments by more than $150 million each year, according to
@ColumbiaSpec
's analysis. [4/7]
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Columbia has long cited its 2009 Community Benefits Agreement—outlining $170 million in commitments to West Harlem over 36 years—as its answer to local investment. Its promises, many set to expire by 2045, average to only $4.72 million annually. [2/7]
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As Columbia’s tax exemptions climb with rising Manhattanville property values, local residents hope to see the University give back more. Still, Columbia has no public plans to increase community donations—with its CBA obligations set to expire by 2045. [5/7]
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The protest marked the largest demonstration in part organized by Columbia University Apartheid Divest since the NYPD swept campus on April 30—arresting over 100 protesters, dismantling the “Gaza Solidarity Encampment,” and clearing occupied Hamilton "Hind's" Hall.
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.
@ColumbiaSpec
analyzed Department of Finance Data and the 2023 CBA Implementation Plan report to compare the University’s annual property tax exemptions to its yearly financial contributions, investment, and spending in the local neighborhood. [3/7]
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