Harwood club to screen ‘The Encampments’ film on March 5

February 19, 2026  |  By Claire Pomer  |  Correspondent

Trailer screenshot from ‘The Encampments’

After facing some community objections in the fall, a Harwood Union High School student club has rescheduled its showing of the documentary film, “The Encampments,” telling the story of the 2024 student protests at Columbia University over the Israel-Palestine conflict. 

Now scheduled for March 5, the event will be open to the public.

Film poster image courtesy of Watermelon Pictures.

The Community Alliance for Racial Equity club – called CARE for short – attempted to screen the film in November, but faced backlash from community members and statewide Jewish advocacy groups. 

Corinna Dodson of Shalom Alliance, a nonprofit that works to combat antisemitism, wrote in an email to Harwood Superintendent Mike Leichliter, “‘The Encampments’ glorifies a moment in recent history where Jewish students across the country faced real violence and trauma… It is painful to see these moments repackaged in a way that erases the trauma many Jewish students experienced, especially when framed as educational or as social justice.” 

In response, the club postponed the event to consider the feedback. “[We] do not want any member of our community to feel targeted, unsafe, or harmed,” the club said in announcing its plans to pause the film showing. They later sent out an email to all Harwood students asking for input about the event and met to discuss whether and how to proceed. 

Distributed by Watermelon Pictures, film was released in March 2025. The artist Macklemore serves as an executive producer, and it’s directed and produced by Michael T. Workman and Kei Pritsker. The film is described on its website as “an urgent, intimate portrait” of the 2024 student protests at Columbia University where students set up encampments on campus to demonstrate opposition to the school’s connections to Israel in the wake of Israel’s invasion of Gaza.

This rescheduled event at Harwood will proceed much according to the original plan with a screening of the documentary followed by a discussion. The club no longer plans to hold a fundraiser for Palestinian families. 

The film viewing will be held on Thursday, March 5, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. in the Harwood library. Attendance will be capped at 40 people with registration online in advance. The event is open to the public with $5 tickets for adults. Students may register for free with their school email.

Claire Pomer is a senior from Waterbury at Harwood Union High School.