New York City police arrested at least 78 people on Wednesday after receiving a request from Columbia University to help clear the school’s main library building from a mob of anarchists.
“We are reviewing the visa status of the trespassers and vandals who took over Columbia University’s library. Pro-Hamas thugs are no longer welcome in our great nation,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a post on the X social media platform.
For hours, the anarchists had ignored the request of campus police to leave peacefully even after being warned they would face disciplinary action and possible arrest for doing so.
We know this moment is fleeting, and that we do not have the capacity to hold it permanently at this time. But one day, this entire building and all the knowledge it holds will be liberated for good, and every book will belong to the free children of the world. pic.twitter.com/MBikqSzNUJ
— CU Apartheid Divest (CUAD) (@ColumbiaBDS) May 7, 2025
The “Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD) organization renamed the building the “Basel Al-Araj Popular University” in a poster online that urged agitators to “bring noise, wear mask. All Out to Butler Library Now!”
In a statement posted online, the anarchists pledged not to be “useless intellectuals” and said, “Palestine is our compass, and we stand strong in the face of violent oppression.”
Two campus police officers were injured in the melee. Protesters claimed they were “kettled” and blocked from leaving the building.
At 6 pm, school officials had had enough, and according to New York City Mayor Eric Adams, sent a “written request” for police backup.
“Requesting the presence of the NYPD is not the outcome we wanted, but it was absolutely necessary to secure the safety of our community,” Columbia University acting president Claire Shipman said in a statement.
Wearing black-checked keffiyehs and face-concealing masks inside Butler Library, the anarchists linked arms and shouted, “We have nothing to lose but our chains.”
Some of the agitators stood on desks, leading the chants with bullhorns. Others hung a sign reading “Strike for Gaza.”
When NYPD officers arrived, those who refused to show ID were arrested immediately.
“Everyone has the right to peacefully protest,” New York State Governor Kathy Hochul commented in a statement. “But violence, vandalism or destruction of property are completely unacceptable.”
