NYPD Arrests 80 as Columbia Cracks Down on Pro-Palestine Protest
Demonstrators protest in Butler Library at Columbia University on May 7.
Photographer: Johanna Hansel/dpa/AP PhotoTakeaways NEW
Eighty people were arrested after masked pro-Palestine protesters occupied Columbia University’s main library Wednesday, according to a law enforcement official, a show of force by the school as it tries to demonstrate its commitment to the White House to fighting antisemitism.
Police entered Butler Library hours after demonstrators, many wearing face coverings and keffiyehs, took over part of the building and draped Palestinian flags along its walls. The protesters burst in as hundreds of students were preparing for final exams, plastering stickers and drawing on walls and desks, according to images posted on the protest group’s X account.