New Yorkers are losing their patience as pro-Palestine protests at Columbia University in Morningside Heights turned violent Tuesday when students stormed into and occupied a campus building, destroying property along the way.
Even before the violent uprising, New Yorkers from the Upper West Side to crosstown and beyond were getting fed up with the Columbia protestors. Students from the Ivy League school and other colleges across the country have been taking part in what appears to be a trend of protests for two weeks, demanding their schools do more to support Palestine — and less to support Israel — amid the ongoing war in the Middle East.
Student protestors at Columbia have demanded the school stop doing business with partners who have ties to Israel.
One New Yorker named Morgan, who wanted to use only her first name, was appalled when she heard about Tuesday’s violent turn of events at Columbia.
“It’s just insane,” the East Harlem mother of three said. “It’s really unnerving and it’s really sad because these people are so young. I don’t think they realize the effects they are having.”
The concerned New Yorker shared that her 17-year-old son had to walk through a pro-Palestine protest uptown shortly after the war in Gaza started and felt scared.
“He was unnerved by the antisemitism,” she said.
‘I can’t believe New Yorkers are tolerating this’
Danielle Avissar of the Upper East Side said she was walking home from a birthday party several blocks from Columbia last week when she witnessed a young man in his early 20s dressed in full keffiyeh aggressively ripping anti-terrorism posters off of utility poles.
Although she was angry that he was desecrating the posters, she stood back in fear, not knowing what his next move could be.
Avissar said as far as she could see, the man was ripping off “every inch” of every poster along his route and threw them on the ground.
“He was in full rage, fully masked,” Avissar, a mother of two, said. “Obviously no one wanted to interact with him because he had his face fully covered.”
Avissar said that neither she nor her neighbors feel safe. She is angry that the Columbia demonstrations descended into violence.
“I can’t believe New Yorkers are even tolerating this,” she said.
Avissar, as others have suggested, feels some protestors may not even be students. But of the ones who are, they need to face consequences from the school, she said.
“Arrest them. They’re illegally camping there,” she said. “Every student faces disciplinary action when breaking the law.”
In a whirlwind of mayhem during Tuesday’s uprising, a group of student protestors stormed the school’s Hamilton Hall near the corner of 116 Street and Amsterdam Avenue, smashing doors and windows, and ripping down barricades.
An alert on the school’s website this morning simply stated it was a protest.
“Early this morning, a group of protestors occupied Hamilton Hall on the Morningside campus,” the alert read. “In light of the protest activity on campus, members of the University community who can avoid coming to the Morningside campus today (Tuesday, April 30) should do so; essential personnel should report to work according to university policy. Please check with your supervisor if you have any questions. “
Outside, the NYPD continues to patrol the perimeter of the school, but their hands are tied. Cops are not allowed in to control the chaos unless Columbia University officials give them the green light to do so.
Another New Yorker from the Upper West Side has a child who attends Columbia — and she is concerned. As a Jewish New Yorker, she preferred to remain anonymous in this article for safety reasons.
“I think the notion that the police are unable to enter private property without an invitation from the owner or landlord is pathetic,” she said. “It does not hold water and jeopardizes the safety of both the students and employee community, as well as the surrounding neighborhood.”
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