Virginia Page Fortna is the Harold Brown Professor of United States Foreign and Security Policy at Columbia University and a leading scholar of conflict resolution. Yet throughout the 2024–2025 campus crisis, she emerged as one of the faculty members most actively defending the encampment movement and criticizing both university leadership and federal oversight.
In April and May 2024, Fortna participated directly in the pro-Hamas encampment, appearing at faculty rallies supporting activists who took over Hamilton Hall and were later arrested by the NYPD. She was filmed holding a sign reading “SHAME” as she stood beside anti-Israel professor Rashid Khalidi during a faculty protest outside Columbia’s gates. She publicly condemned the police response that followed vandalism inside the building.
Her social media activity in April 2024 echoed the same themes: defense of the encampment, dismissal of safety concerns raised by Jewish students, and vocal criticism of both Columbia and the NYPD. Articles written about the encampments repeatedly cited her as a defender of the protesters’ “freedom of speech.”
By 2025, she had become a faculty fixture at multiple anti-administration rallies. She joined Columbia’s AAUP chapter in declaring a loss of confidence in President Minouche Shafik. She participated in the June “No Kings” protest against the Trump administration’s funding cuts, ICE detentions of Columbia affiliates, and federal oversight measures. In interviews with CNN and Columbia Spectator, she argued that the crackdown on protests risked “radicalizing” student activists and described the situation at Columbia as “the erosion of democracy.”
Her published work during this period followed the same trajectory. She wrote that Israel’s military actions in Gaza may violate international law and framed Israeli leadership as an obstacle to peace. While condemning Hamas terror, she emphasized critiques of Israel’s response and amplified pro-Palestinian talking points.
Across two years of escalating unrest, Fortna consistently aligned herself with the protest movement’s ideological framing while minimizing or ignoring the reports of antisemitic hostility that sparked federal intervention. Her role helped normalize activism that left many Jewish students feeling unsafe and unheard.
Record of Advocacy and Ideological Bias
Academic and Organizational Roles
Harold Brown Professor of United States Foreign and Security Policy at Columbia University
International relations scholar specializing in conflict resolution
Frequent commentator on war, diplomacy, and U.S. foreign policy
Public Statements and Activism
April to May 2024 participation in the pro-Hamas encampment, including faculty rallies after the Hamilton Hall takeover
Visible presence holding “SHAME” signs in protest videos
April 2024 social media posts condemning NYPD actions and defending encampment activists
May 2025 participation in the AAUP action declaring no confidence in Columbia’s president
June 2025 participation in the “No Kings” protest opposing federal oversight and funding cuts
July 2025 Columbia Spectator op-ed condemning Trump administration actions
April 2025 commentary to CNN warning that crackdowns could radicalize protesters
January 2025 article critiquing Israeli leadership during ceasefire negotiations
November 2023 Los Angeles Times op-ed condemning both Hamas and Israel, criticizing Israel’s military conduct, and suggesting potential violations of international law
Collaborations and Affiliations
Active participant in Columbia AAUP chapter activism
Appeared alongside anti-Israel faculty leaders including Rashid Khalidi during encampment events
Regularly shared and amplified pro-Palestinian articles and posts on social media
Engaged in networks of faculty opposing federal scrutiny of campus antisemitism
Public advocate for protester-aligned faculty groups challenging Columbia’s administrative response
Impact on Campus Climate and Accountability Concerns
Fortna’s participation carried significant institutional weight. When a senior professor of conflict studies stands with a movement associated with intimidation, vandalism, and Title VI investigations, it reinforces a message that faculty authority protects activism rather than student safety.
Her public commentary framed administrative and federal accountability as oppression, while failing to acknowledge the hostile environment Jewish students described. Faculty actions like Fortna’s contributed directly to Columbia’s spiraling crisis of trust, governance, and safety; and to the perception that political activism had overtaken academic responsibility.
