NYPD arrests protesters after pro-Palestinian takeover at Barnard College library

Yahoo

06-03-2025

NEW YORK — The NYPD took multiple protesters into custody at Barnard College late Wednesday as an occupation of the school library against three pro-Palestinian students' expulsions was broken up over a bomb threat.
Hours earlier, dozens of masked protesters had taken over the Milstein Center with Palestinian flags and materials labeled as coming from the Hamas media office, according to images shared on social media. The occupation escalated tensions with school administrators in the aftermath of another building occupation last week.
The demonstrators filed into an unmarked side entrance of the Milstein Center around 1 p.m., according to videos posted by a pro-Palestinian organization not associated with Barnard or its affiliate, Columbia University.
The police officers, with helmets and zip ties, entered campus and began removing the protesters around 5 p.m. after the NYPD received a 911 call of a bomb threat. Multiple demonstrators who did not comply with the order to move to a safe distance were taken into custody, cops said, though could not immediately say how many.
Charges were pending as of early Wednesday evening.
The protesters had previously received warnings from Barnard demanding the group disperse because they were in violation of campus rules. Activists ripped the written notices to shreds, saying they intended to stay.
'We were left with no choice but to resume the sit-in because Barnard has shown they will sabotage negotiations unless we hold them accountable,' the protesters wrote on Substack. 'Until administrators concede to our demands, we in our hundreds will continue to disrupt their business as usual.'
Barnard administrators renewed their plea when the college became aware of the threat.
'I am telling you that we need to evacuate the building. We have received a bomb threat to the building. … You need to leave now. This is not a joke,' Barnard Vice President Robin Levine said in a video posted by protesters, who accused the school administrator of lying to get students to disperse.
In an email to students and faculty a couple of hours into the disruption, Barnard President Laura Rosenbury said 'the actions of a few' must not be allowed to disrupt students' education.
'Our academic mission is at the heart of what we do, and disruptions to that mission are an affront to the purpose of higher education and cannot be tolerated,' wrote Rosenbury, adding that campus activities outside of Milstein were proceeding as usual.
Inside the building lobby, protesters holding the Palestinian flag chanted through megaphones: 'We want justice, you say how? Un-expel our students now,' while others played drums and cymbals, videos show. Demonstrators held 'Wanted' signs of Rosenbury and Student Life Dean Leslie Grinage for 'the wrongful expulsion of pro-Palestinian students.'
The three expelled students faced disciplinary action over their participation in either a class disruption this semester involving antisemitic flyers or last spring's occupation of Hamilton Hall.
Another activist jostled with a puppet that had a name tag identifying it as Rosenbury, before hanging it outside the building by its neck. Protesters continued to call on the college president to disclose Barnard's investments in Israel.
'Puppet President Rosenbury, are the Zionist Donors pulling the strings?' Columbia University Apartheid Divest, a coalition of various student clubs, wrote on Instagram.
In photos shared by a pro-Israel student group, the protesters appeared to be distributing a pamphlet titled: 'Our Narrative … Operation Al-Aqsa Flood' from what was labeled as the Hamas Media Office. They also hung stickers and posters calling for 'Death to Amerika' (sic) and 'Burn Barnard Burn.'
Public safety agents blocked the entrance of Milstein shortly after the disruption began, according to Bwog, a student-run campus news website. About an hour in, administrators issued a notice to protesters as a final warning.
'We have offered you multiple opportunities to leave the building peacefully and without further escalation,' read the memo. 'If you do not comply with this request, we will take further action as necessary to clear the building.'
In a brief phone call, Rosenbury offered a meeting with the Barnard administration, so long as students removed their masks.
'Our demand is to reinstate the expelled students because of how unjust this process has been, and we don't intend on leaving until that happens,' one of the participants responded, videos show.
Columbia, which is under intense pressure to crack down on protest activity amid threats to withhold funding from the federal government, released a statement separating itself from Barnard, though adding it was in touch with the affiliated college's leaders.
'The disruption of academic activities is not acceptable conduct,' it read. 'We are committed to supporting our Columbia student body and our campus community during this challenging time.'
The U.S. Education Department, the Department of Health and Human Services and the General Services Administration are considering stop-work orders for at least $51.4 million of active contracts in Morningside Heights.
_____
(With Barry Williams and Elizabeth Keogh.)
_____