Police Clear Building at Columbia and Arrest Dozens of Protesters (2024)

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Here are the latest developments.

The occupation escalated a crisis that has consumed the university and ignited days of student activism on dozens of campuses nationwide. On Tuesday night, pro-Palestinian demonstrators were arrested at City College of New York in Harlem, and the University of California, Los Angeles, declared a pro-Palestinian encampment illegal for the first time.

Here’s what to know:

• Nearly two weeks ago, the police arrested more than 100 protesters who had set up tents on Columbia’s campus. That angered many faculty members and students, who almost immediately pitched new tents.

• Columbia’s campus remained closed on Wednesday to everyone but students who live there and employees who provide essential services. It said it would expel any students who had occupied Hamilton Hall, a building with a history of student takeovers.

• Officials at Portland State University in Oregon urged protesters to leave a library that they had occupied on campus. And the police moved into an encampment at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, arresting about 30 people. Protesters returned later in the day.

• The police managed to end the eight-day occupation of an administration building at California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt, and in Rhode Island, Brown students dismantled their encampment after administrators agreed to consider their demands.

• More than 1,000 protesters have been taken into custody on U.S. campuses since the original roundup at Columbia on April 18, according to a tally by The New York Times. Here’s where the arrests have happened.

Reporting was contributed by Mike Baker, Kimberly Cortez, J. David Goodman, Claire Fahy, Jose Quezada, Jonathan Wolfe and John Yoon.

A group of House Democrats was among those urging Columbia to crack down.

The letter, reported earlier by Axios, accused Columbia of violating Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, by failing to create a safe environment for Jewish students and allowing “the unauthorized and impermissible encampment of anti-Israel, anti-Jewish activists on campus.”

In recent weeks, some protesters had suggested that pro-Israel demonstrators should be the target of a terrorist attack or that Zionists do not deserve to live.

“The First Amendment guarantees freedom of speech and assembly, but not freedom to harass and intimidate other students,” wrote the lawmakers, led by Representatives Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey and Dan Goldman of New York. “It is clear to us that the university has allowed the encampment to create an environment that appears to violate its legal obligations to protect all students from discrimination and harassment.”

The letter, signed mostly by moderates, reflected the fractures among Democrats over Israel’s war in Gaza and the resulting protests that have swept the nation’s campuses. Three days earlier, progressive Democrats such as Representatives Jamaal Bowman and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York visited the protesters and voiced support for their dissent.

On Tuesday, some Republican senators also invoked Title VI, urging Education Secretary Miguel A. Cardona to cut funding for Columbia during a hearing.

Mr. Cardona replied, “Ultimately, if a school refuses to comply with Title VI, yes, we would remove federal dollars.”

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The N.Y.P.D. arrests protesters at City College’s campus in Harlem.

The police first made arrests at near West 139th Street and Amsterdam Avenue in Harlem. Demonstrators could be heard screaming and cursing at the police, and an officer could be heard ordering the crowd to back away as protesters were arrested. Moments later the police warned everyone to leave the area. They then moved onto the campus and arrested people in the encampments.

The arrests came as officials at nearby Columbia University asked the New York Police Department to clear a building that had been occupied.

The U.C.L.A. Palestinian Solidarity Encampment, which says it is made up of students, faculty members and community members, called the declaration cowardly and said that it did not plan to disband.

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The text of the April 30 letter from Columbia’s president to the N.Y.P.D.

Letter to NYPD - Apr. 30

April 30, 2024

The letter below was sent by President Minouche Shafik to the New York Police Department’s deputy commissioner for legal matters on April 30, 2024.

April 30, 2024

Michael Gerber, Deputy Commissioner, Legal Matters

New York City Police Department

Dear Deputy Commissioner Gerber,

I write with regard to the unrest on Columbia’s campus.

As we have discussed, in the early morning of April 30, 2024 a group of individuals entered Hamilton Hall for the purpose of occupying the building. The building was closed at the time the students entered. An individual hid in the building until after it closed and let the other individuals in. There were two security guards inside. We were able to secure their release. We believe that while the group who broke into the building includes students, it is led by individuals who are not affiliated with the University. The individuals who have occupied Hamilton Hall have vandalized University property and are trespassing.

In addition, we have had a continuing encampment on the West Lawn of the Morningside campus since Friday, April 19, 2024. Last night an additional encampment appeared on the Math Lawn.

After more than a week of discussions with representatives of the group engaged in the West Lawn encampment, we reached an impasse on Sunday, April 28, 2024. The group was informed that they are not permitted to occupy spaces on campus, are in violation of the University’s rules and policies and must disperse. All University students in the West Lawn encampment were informed Monday morning that they would be suspended if they did not disperse by 2:00pm Monday and that participation in other campus encampments was prohibited. At this time, all participants in the encampments are suspended, not authorized to be on University property and are trespassing.

The takeover of Hamilton Hall and the continued encampments raise serious safety concerns for the individuals involved and the entire community. The actions of these individuals are unfortunately escalating. These activities have become a magnet for protesters outside our gates which creates significant risk to our campus and disrupts the ability of the University to continue normal operations.

The events on campus last night have left us no choice. With the support of the University’s Trustees, I have determined that the building occupation, the encampments, and related disruptions pose a clear and present danger to persons, property, and the substantial functioning of the University and require the use of emergency authority to protect persons and property.

With the utmost regret, we request the NYPD’s help to clear all individuals from Hamilton Hall and all campus encampments. As part of this process, we understand that the NYPD plans to use its LRAD technology to inform participants in the encampments that they must disperse.

In light of the activities that occurred after the events of April 17-18, 2024, we further request that you retain a presence on campus through at least May 17, 2024 to maintain order and ensure encampments are not reestablished.

We trust that you will take care and caution when removing any individual from our campus. The safety and security of our community is our highest priority, especially for our students. We appreciate your commitment to assist us in a peaceful and respectful manner at this difficult time.

Columbia is committed to allowing members of our community to engage in political expression – within established rules and with respect for the safety of all. The policies we have in place around demonstrations are in place to support both the right to expression and the safety and functioning of our University.

Thank you for your assistance with this very challenging situation.

Sincerely,

Minouche Shafik

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Columbia’s president asked the police to stay on campus through mid-May.

By late evening, dozens of police officers had arrived, climbed through windows on campus and arrested protesters who had occupied a building since early Tuesday. Much of the campus had been cleared of people, although dozens of protesters still chanted outside of its gates.

Dr. Shafik said in the letter that “the takeover of Hamilton Hall and the continued encampments raise serious safety concerns for the individuals involved and the entire community,” adding that “these activities have become a magnet for protesters outside our gates which creates significant risk to our campus and disrupts the ability of the University to continue normal operations.”

A decision earlier this month to bring police onto campus to clear a tent protest led to sharp criticism from some students and faculty. But Dr. Shafik said on Tuesday that she was left with “no choice.”

“With the support of the University’s Trustees, I have determined that the building occupation, the encampments, and related disruptions pose a clear and present danger to persons, property, and the substantial functioning of the University and require the use of emergency authority to protect persons and property,” she wrote.

She continued: “With the utmost regret, we request the NYPD’s help to clear all individuals from Hamilton Hall and all campus encampments.”

In the letter, Dr. Shafik stated that in the early morning of April 30, a group of individuals entered Hamilton Hall “for the purpose of occupying the building,” and though the building was closed at the time the students entered, an individual hid in the building until after it closed and let the others in.

“We believe that while the group who broke into the building includes students, it is led by individuals who are not affiliated with the University,” the university president said. “The individuals who have occupied Hamilton Hall have vandalized University property and are trespassing.”

Dr. Shafik also mentioned the continuing encampment on the West Lawn of the Morningside Heights campus that has been there since April 19, as well as an additional encampment that appeared on Monday night.

“After more than a week of discussions with representatives of the group engaged in the West Lawn encampment, we reached an impasse on Sunday, April 28,” she said. “The group was informed that they are not permitted to occupy spaces on campus, are in violation of the University’s rules and policies and must disperse.”

She said that all University students in the West Lawn encampment were informed Monday morning that they would be suspended if they did not disperse by 2 p.m. that day and that participation in other campus encampments was prohibited. The students still in the encampments are suspended, she said.

In the letter, Dr. Shafik added that she requested that the Police Department “retain a presence on campus through at least May 17, 2024 to maintain order and ensure encampments are not reestablished.”

“The doors were barricaded with, like, conference tables, chairs or soda machines,” Nieves added. “The windows were actually taped up with newspapers so we couldn’t see.”

Nearly all the vehicles parked north of West 116th Street and Amsterdam Avenue have left the area.

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Officers are clearing protesters and press members from Columbia's College Walk, the path that runs through the center of campus.

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There were about five buses total.

The university said in its statement that the leadership team, which included the Board of Trustees, met throughout the night and into the early morning, and consulted with security experts and law enforcement to determine “the best plan to protect our students and the entire Columbia community.”

“We made the decision, early in the morning, that this was a law enforcement matter, and that the N.Y.P.D. were best positioned to determine and execute an appropriate response,” the university said.

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U.C.L.A tells protesters to leave the encampment on campus.

After protesters established the encampment on Thursday in the shadow of Royce Hall, university officials did not intervene and said they wanted to support free speech rights while minimizing campus disruption.

But patience appeared to run out after violent confrontations in recent days between pro-Palestinian demonstrators and Israel supporters that required the campus police to intervene. Administrators also took issue with instances in which protesters used metal gates and human walls to control access to campus walkways and entrances, videos of which had circulated on social media.

In a statement on Tuesday, Gene Block, the chancellor, called such tactics “shocking and shameful” and said that protesters who engaged in such behavior could face suspension or expulsion.

“U.C.L.A. supports peaceful protest, but not activism that harms our ability to carry out our academic mission and makes people in our community feel bullied, threatened and afraid,” Mr. Block said. “These incidents have put many on our campus, especially our Jewish students, in a state of anxiety and fear.”

In a statement, the U.C.L.A. Palestinian Solidarity Encampment, which says it is made up of students, faculty members and community members, called the university’s declaration on Tuesday night a “cowardly intimidation tactic” and said it did not plan to disband.

“This repression tactic is a continuation of a long history of attempts to shut down student activism and silence pro-Palestinian voices,” the group said. “We will not leave. We will remain here until our demands are met.”

Jewish activists have had a larger presence at U.C.L.A. than at other campus demonstrations in California, and dueling protests have been particularly intense.

On Sunday, the Israeli American Council, which has denounced pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses as “overtly antisemitic,” hosted a rally at U.C.L.A. that drew thousands of people. Organizers set up a stage and a large screen near the pro-Palestinian encampment and then led prayers, hosted speakers and welcomed performers who sang Israeli pop songs.

But tempers also flared, with shouting matches and scuffles between the two sides, including altercations after an encampment barrier was breached.

“U.C.L.A. has a long history of being a place of peaceful protest, and we are heartbroken about the violence that broke out,” Mary Osako, the university’s vice chancellor for strategic communications, said in a statement that day, vowing to increase security.

On Monday night, another fight broke out between two groups of protesters after about 60 pro-Israel demonstrators attempted to enter the pro-Palestinian encampment. Campus police officers had to break up the dispute.

Pro-Israeli demonstrators began arriving at the encampment almost immediately after it was first set up. For the past several days, they have waved Israeli flags, spoken through megaphones, played music through loudspeakers and held up images of some of the hostages captured by Hamas on Oct. 7.

On Tuesday, a large screen near the encampment played footage from the Hamas-led terrorist attack on Israel. At noon, a plane flying a “Jewish Lives Matter” banner circled the campus.

Many Jewish groups say the campus protests have created a climate that is hostile toward Jewish students. The Israeli American Council has responded by holding “support rallies” across the nation similar to the one Sunday at U.C.L.A., including events in Atlanta and Orange County, Calif., on Wednesday.

Asher Taxon, a freshman at U.C.L.A. who is Jewish, said the Sunday rally had given him a much-needed boost.

“It was great, it felt like we’re still here and that they can’t get rid of us,” Mr. Taxon said. “It was nice seeing other Jews and Israelis singing and dancing and showing that we are supported.”

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators said Tuesday that the daily counter-demonstrations at U.C.L.A. had been emotionally and mentally exhausting.

The “actions and behavior of these counterprotesters is indicative of the treatment of the people on the ground in Gaza,” said Kaia Shah, a researcher and a recent U.C.L.A. graduate. “What this has done to the people in our encampment is made them even more passionate about our cause.”

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