The Chris Hedges Report – "The Encampments"

Guests: Mahmoud Khalil & Michael Workman
Host: Chris Hedges
Date: December 11, 2025

Overview of the Episode

This episode of The Chris Hedges Report centers on the student protest encampments that sprang up at Columbia University and across the globe in 2024 in response to the war in Gaza. Chris Hedges discusses the student movement's origins, its historic and global reverberations, media portrayals, the academic and institutional backlash, and the making of the documentary film "The Encampments" with documentarian Michael Workman and organizer Mahmoud Khalil.

The conversation delves into the interplay of activism, state repression, academic freedom, media censorship, and the enduring hope and solidarity found in student movements.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

I. The Genesis of the Encampments (00:10–06:56)

• Columbia's Encampment as a Catalyst:
  On April 17, 2024, hundreds of students set up an encampment at Columbia University in protest of the war in Gaza and to demand divestment from corporations profiting from Israel's occupation (00:10). The administration’s decision to call in police led to student arrests, inadvertently galvanizing similar protests at over 100 universities across the U.S. and internationally.

• Historical Context of Activism:
  Mahmoud Khalil underscores that student organizing around Palestine at Columbia dates back decades, with demands for divestment beginning as early as 2002 (05:00).

• University Response as a PR Crisis:
  Khalil discusses his role as a negotiator, highlighting the administration's treatment of the encampment as a PR and disciplinary issue, not a civil rights movement (04:10).

  "Columbia never dealt with the encampment as a righteous civil rights...movement... They reacted to it as a PR crisis, as a disciplinary matter."
  — Mahmoud Khalil (04:10)

II. Suppression of Pro-Palestinian Groups (06:56–08:16)

• Preemptive Banning:
  Columbia banned Jewish Voices for Peace and Students for Justice in Palestine even before protests erupted, framing them as sources of "hateful rhetoric," a claim later quietly retracted (07:13).

III. Media Portrayal vs. Reality (08:16–12:49)

• Misrepresentation and Slander:
  Michael Workman reflects on how establishment media distorted the protests as antisemitic and violent, ignoring Jewish participation and the movement’s inclusive nature. He describes how the film aims to counter these narratives:

  "Every opportunity the media got to actually engage with what the students were demanding...they refused to do that and would...redirect to...false claims of violence on campus and false claims of antisemitism..."
  — Michael Workman (09:06)

• On-the-Ground Reality:
  Hedges recounts interfaith solidarity at encampments, with Muslims and Jews holding prayers and Shabbat side by side (08:16).

IV. Nature and Direction of Violence (11:16–14:06)

• Violence Targeted at Protesters:
  The most egregious violence, Hedges and Workman agree, was enacted against the protesters, not by them. Workman describes attacks at UCLA by counter-protesters, tolerated or ignored by administration and police (12:49).

• Projection and Inversion:
  "It's just like Israel, where every accusation is an admission of guilt...psychological projection where the people who are doing the violence are claiming that there's being violence inflicted on them at every turn."
  — Michael Workman (12:49)

• Institutional Rewards for Aggressors:
  Khalil mentions that Columbia rewarded a student who assaulted others with a significant financial grant (14:06).

V. The Occupation of Hamilton (Hind) Hall (16:00–21:17)

• Historical Resonance:
  The occupation was inspired by Columbia’s protest tradition (1968 anti-Vietnam War, anti-apartheid movement). It symbolized the quest to be heard in the face of administration intransigence (16:33).

  "They wanted to also shift that focus back to Gaza...they named it after Hind Rajab, the six-year-old Palestinian girl who was shot hundreds of times by the Israeli occupation forces in Gaza."
  — Mahmoud Khalil (18:31)

• Escalating Police Response:
  The administration, together with billionaires, pushed for a militarized police response, bringing military-grade equipment to campus and even using live ammunition (19:23–20:40).

VI. Transformation of the University—The “Police State” (21:29–26:56)

• Administrative Dystopia:
  The juxtaposition of President Minouche Shafik's call for “community” with new repressive measures highlights the university’s transformation into a "police state" (21:29–23:44).

  "Columbia became a police state...It was incredibly hard for even students to get on campus. They recreated a kind of war on terror adjacent threat level..."
  — Michael Workman (22:14)

• Structural Priorities:
  Khalil explains that Columbia is run like a business serving billionaires, the arms industry, and Wall Street, with leadership shifts reflecting PR and financial needs, not academic priorities (25:00–26:41).

  "Columbia now acts...less as a nature place for inquiry and more as credential factory for the policy class."
  — Mahmoud Khalil (27:47)

VII. Erosion of Academic Freedom (26:56–29:52)

• Repercussions for Academia:
  Khalil highlights the chilling effect on academic freedom at Columbia and beyond: “They sold out on their values... Columbia now acts...more as a credential factory for the policy class...” (27:47).

• Financial Settlement and Gatekeeping:
  Hedges and Khalil detail millions paid in settlements and the manufacturing of mainstream consensus through institutional incentives, especially in journalism (28:47).

VIII. Meaning for Palestinians and Global Solidarity (29:52–33:00)

• Awakening and Hope:
  Khalil, a Palestinian who grew up in a Syrian refugee camp, describes the immense symbolic power of global solidarity:

  "It means that finally the people are awakened to what's happening to Palestine...There is some hope that there's a change coming."
  — Mahmoud Khalil (30:21)

• Community as Resistance:
  The encampments built communities across identities, teaching histories of injustice and countering institutional suppression (31:41).

IX. Censorship and Distribution of the Film (33:00–39:35)

• Roadblocks and Harassment:
  Workman details harassment, threats, and institutional pressure used to prevent screenings—from vandalism and arrests (at UCLA) to mass email campaigns pressuring theaters (33:13–34:01).

  "We've seen that...But it's really been the grassroots and the movement that has gotten us through that."
  — Michael Workman (36:56)

• Grassroots Support as Lifeline:
  Despite rejections from festivals and streaming platforms, overwhelming community support ensured successful screenings and momentum for the film (36:56–39:23).

• How to Watch:
  "People can rent the film on...Apple TV, Vimeo, YouTube, Amazon...organize screenings...at your churches, at your schools, in your community groups...go to watermelonpictures.com..."
  — Michael Workman (39:35)

X. The Ongoing Struggle and Next Steps (40:44–45:10)

• Continued Repression:
  Khalil updates on his legal situation, with ongoing attempts to deport him despite court rulings affirming his rights (41:05).

• Sustaining the Movement:
  The struggle continues as the war persists, with only a reduction, not cessation, in violence. Khalil urges ongoing advocacy:

  • Pressuring institutions and politicians, especially around the midterms
  • Organizing on all levels (federal, local, schools, co-ops)
  • Preventing public amnesia about the scale of violence in Gaza

  "The most important thing is to not forget that Israel is continuing with...its occupation, with its apartheid, with its ethnic cleansing, whether it is genocide, and to make them pay for it, to make them pay for it by cutting all sorts of ties, funds, relationships with the pariah state of Israel..."
  — Mahmoud Khalil (41:49)

  "The last thing that we want is for people to forget what Israel has done to Palestinians in Gaza for killing over 70,000 Palestinians..."
  — Mahmoud Khalil (43:57)

• Vision of Liberation:
  Khalil closes with a vision of full liberation, equality, and dignity for all:

  "A full liberation where everyone...can live in peace, dignity, freedom, regardless of their religion, regardless of...what views they have..."
  — Mahmoud Khalil (44:47)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Administration’s PR Tactics:
  "They don't want to be seen as conceding to the students. But they wanted to make the illusion that there was talks..."
  — Mahmoud Khalil (04:34)
• On Media Slander:
  "Every opportunity the media got to actually engage with what the students were demanding...they refused to do that..."
  — Michael Workman (09:06)
• On Interfaith Solidarity:
  "Who want to create...On Friday night...Muslim students would do their prayers...then the Jewish students would have Shabbat on the same tarp. This was the world we want to create."
  — Chris Hedges (08:16)
• On Violence and Institutional Response:
  "Columbia University...invited violence into its campus by bringing the police not one time, not two times, over about five times in a matter of one year."
  — Mahmoud Khalil (20:38)
• On Academic Freedom:
  "Columbia now acts...as a credential factory for the policy class. Like, literally, like...faculty...are moving between Langley, the State Department and Morningside Heights..."
  — Mahmoud Khalil (27:47)
• On Community and Hope:
  "We had community gatherings, we had teachings...That’s what feared the administrations...that these students can find a community where they care about each other..."
  — Mahmoud Khalil (31:41)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:10–06:56 – Background of the Columbia encampment and university response
• 08:16–12:49 – Media distortion and realities inside encampments
• 12:49–14:06 – Violence against protesters, Jewish student participation, projection in accusations
• 16:00–21:17 – Hamilton Hall (Hind Hall): historical legacy, escalation, police repression
• 22:14–23:44 – Transformation into a "police state," symbolic and practical repression
• 27:47–29:52 – Academic freedom, Columbia’s transformation, institutional incentives
• 30:21–32:15 – Khalil’s personal perspective, hope, and global solidarity
• 33:13–36:56 – Censorship and harassment in the film’s release
• 39:35–40:44 – How to see the film, grassroots distribution
• 41:05–45:10 – Khalil’s legal status and concluding message for the movement

Conclusion

This episode offers an inside look at the reality, resonance, and repression of the 2024 campus encampments for Palestine, countering distortions in mainstream accounts. It makes clear that what began as an act of student protest at Columbia became a focal point for global solidarity, the suppression of dissent, and the challenge to institutional complacency. The episode ends on a call for sustained resistance, education, and solidarity until justice and liberation are achieved for Palestinians.