Columbia University Deploys Police to Quell Pro-Palestinian Occupation Threat

The confrontation at Columbia University unfolded shortly after 9 p.m. on Tuesday as scores of police officers, wearing helmets and carrying zip ties and riot shields, massed at the college’s entrance. Multiple protesters were taken into custody and whisked away from campus on buses after officers climbed through windows to enter the occupied Hamilton Hall. In all, nearly 100 people were arrested during the volatile clash, with about 40 of those coming from inside the building itself.

The Hamilton Hall occupation began more than 12 hours earlier when pro-Palestinian demonstrators took over the Columbia University administration building shortly after midnight, expanding their reach from an encampment set up nearly two weeks prior to protest the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. The police action to clear the building came on the 56th anniversary of a similar crackdown in 1968 when officers quashed an occupation of Hamilton Hall by students protesting racism and the Vietnam War.

Columbia University Appeals for Order After “Last Resort” Police Deployment

In a statement issued as police entered campus, Columbia University described its decision to call in the NYPD as an absolute “last resort” after claiming protesters had vandalized Hamilton Hall, blocked entrances, and threatened university staff. “After the Columbia University learned overnight that Hamilton Hall had been occupied, vandalized, and blockaded, we were left with no choice,” the statement read. It added that campus public safety officers were forced out of the building.

The Columbia university insisted “the decision to reach out to the NYPD was in response to the actions of the protesters, not the cause they are championing.” Columbia University stated it had “made it clear that the life of Columbia University campus cannot be endlessly interrupted by protesters who violate the rules and the law.” The administration said it called police only with “the utmost regret” after failed negotiations with the occupiers.

Nationwide Campus Unrest Over Palestinian Crisis

The unrest at Columbia University is part of a wave of pro-Palestinian protests that has swept college campuses across the nation over the past two weeks, from California to Massachusetts. As May commencement ceremonies approach, university administrators face mounting pressure to clear out demonstrators, some of whom have occupied campus buildings.
More than 1,000 protesters have been arrested in confrontations with police over the last two weeks at universities in states like Texas, Utah, Virginia, and California. At California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt, 25 people were arrested overnight after protesters occupied two buildings, causing an estimated $1 million in damage according to officials.

Deep Divisions Over Motives and Legitimacy of Protests

While organizers maintain the campus protests are a peaceful movement aimed at defending Palestinian rights and denouncing the Israel-Hamas war, Israeli government supporters have branded them as antisemitic. Although some individual protesters have been caught making antisemitic remarks, Jewish students have joined the demonstrations in large numbers.
At Columbia University, tensions boiled over as the administration set a deadline for activists to abandon their tent encampment on Monday or face suspension. Instead, protesters defied the order and occupied Hamilton Hall the following day, erecting barricades and issuing demands for divestment and amnesty.

As the occupation crisis intensified, former President Donald Trump weighed in live on Fox News, praising the NYPD’s delayed crackdown while criticizing that it “should never have gotten to this” point. The White House condemned the campus standoffs, with an official saying President Biden believes “occupying an academic building is absolutely the wrong approach” and “not an example of peaceful protest.”