Police descend on occupied building at Columbia in NYC
Police in New York City clashed with protesters while descending on an occupied building at Columbia University.
NEW YORK − Police announced almost 300 arrests at two universities in the city while at the University of California, Los Angeles, officers in riot gear swept onto campus early Wednesday as opposition to Israel’s war in Gaza continued to roll through campuses across the nation.
Dozens of the New York arrests involved pro-Palestinian demonstrators removed late Tuesday from an administration building at Columbia University, where officers also removed encampments that had been the epicenter of the nationwide protests.
“Students and outside activists breaking Hamilton Hall doors, mistreating our Public Safety officers and maintenance staff, and damaging property are acts of destruction, not political speech,” Columbia President Minouche Shafik said in a statement Wednesday. She added that many students felt unwelcome on campus because of the disruption and anti-Semitic comments made by some protesters.
At City College, affiliated with CUNY, officials requested NYPD assistance after the college said students and “un-affiliated external individuals” refused to leave. The school issued a statement saying students have a right to demonstrate peacefully, but that police were called in because of “specific and repeated acts of violence and vandalism, not in response to peaceful protest.”
About 1,200 people in southern Israel were killed and more than 200 taken hostage in the Hamas-led attack on Israel on Oct. 7. The Israeli retaliatory assault has killed nearly 35,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to Gaza health ministry figures, and obliterated much of the enclave’s infrastructure. The humanitarian crisis has fueled outrage on some US campuses and spurred demands for an end to investment in Israeli companies and amnesty for student protesters.
Developments:
∎ Protesters and police clashed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison when officers broke up an encampment there Wednesday. Video from the scene showed some protesters being pinned to the ground.
∎ Tulane University said at least 14 protesters were arrested from the “illegal encampment” the school said was dominated by protesters “unaffiliated with our community.”
At UCLA, video posted on social media showed counterdemonstrators battering a makeshift barricade around pro-Palestinian protesters. The Los Angeles Police Department said it responded to UCLA’s request to restore order “due to multiple acts of violence within the large encampment” on the campus. “The violence unfolding this evening at UCLA is absolutely abhorrent and inexcusable,” Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said in a Twitter post Wednesday. “LAPD has arrived on campus.”
The Jewish Federation Los Angeles issued a statement issued a statement saying it was “appalled” at the violence, saying it did not “represent the Jewish community or our values.” But the statement also blamed the melee on the UCLA administration for allowing an environment that made students feel unsafe.
UCLA canceled Wednesday classes and Chancellor Gene Block said the student conduct process has been initiated and could lead to disciplinary action including suspension or expulsion, he said.
New York City police made 119 arrests at Columbia University and 173 at City College in Tuesday’s crackdowns on protesters, Commissioner Edward Caban said Wednesday. Charges range from trespass to criminal mischief to burglary, and the breakdown of students to non-students facing charges was not yet available, he said.
Police also said there were no injuries, although CUNY for Palestine issued a statement saying one student suffered a broken ankle, two had broken teeth and others received burns from pepper spray used by police during the melee.
Mayor Eric Adams said drones and encryption radios used at Columbia provided police with the element of surprise when they retook Hamilton Hall, adding that “professionals at radicalizing” had influenced the student protesters and co-opted the protest but did not provide details.
Officers climbed into Hamilton Hall, which protesters had occupied earlier Tuesday, through a second-story window. Within three hours Tuesday night, they had retaken the building, NYPD said.
“It was about external actors hijacking a peaceful protest and influencing students to escalate,” Adams said. “We cannot allow what should be a lawful protest turn into a violent spectacle that serves no purpose.”
Northwestern, Brown reach deal: Make pact with student demonstrators to curb protests
Some student activists who pitched tents and camped on university lawns to protest Israel’s military attacks in Gaza have begun to declare victory after hammering out agreements with school administrators. https://twitter.com/mchael_mchael/status/1785424416504951172?s=46&t=9v4yGZuF4PUnsrGxLXiZuw became the first US school to publicly announce a deal on Monday. On Tuesday, Brown University protesters broke camp after President Christina Paxson said the Rhode Island school will bring divestment demands to a vote. Organizers hope the deals set a new precedent for protest encampments around the US and show a way to find common ground without using force.
“What these students have done is truly, truly historical,” Summer Pappachen, a graduate student and organizer of the Northwestern encampment, told USA TODAY Tuesday amid cleanup of the lawn students held for days. “We have been able to achieve (our goals) while keeping students safe.”
− Michael Loria
Columbia building cleared: Police storm into building held by pro-Palestinian protesters
The student protesters opposed to Israel’s military attacks in Gaza say they want their schools to stop funneling endowment money to Israeli companies and other businesses, like weapons manufacturers, that profit from the war in Gaza. In addition to divestment, protesters are calling for a cease-fire, and student governments at some colleges have also passed resolutions in recent weeks calling for an end to academic partnerships with Israel. The protesters also want the US to stop supplying funding and weapons to the war effort.
More recently, amnesty for students and professors involved in the protests has become an issue. Protesters want protections amid threats of disciplinary action and termination for those participating in demonstrations that violate campus policy or local laws.
− Claire Thornton
Contributing: Reuters
