Hundreds of protesters snaked through Manhattan Tuesday in a rowdy demonstration that hit every ritzy university that has erected encampments in the past two weeks — with rally leaders threatening that administrators “should be” scared of their students.
The “Flood the Encampments for Gaza” march started at New York University, where some clueless students admitted last week they had no idea what they were rallying over, before moving on to New School, FIT, Columbia University and City College.
“We have made it clear to the institution what the only appropriate resolution is. And we will not de-escalate, we will not decamp and we will not rest until this university — which has blood on its hands — cuts every last tie with a Zionist institution, to the Zionist entity,” one protester shouted outside the John A. Paulson Center, the university’s fitness center and classroom space named after a Jewish alumnus.
She claimed that the administration was attempting to “strong arm” the protesters into “leaving the encampment before [their] demands are met.”
The threats of disciplinary action, she continued, are considered the “highest honor” for protesters.
The group also blasted Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a “war criminal” and called for canceling “Zionist universities.”
Many of the roughly 150 protesters wore keffiyehs, a Middle Eastern headdress, to cover their faces as they waved Palestinian flags and signs calling for the nation to be freed from Israeli rule.
Sometime during the protest, vandals splattered a blood-like substance on the home of NYU President Linda Mills, whose failure to tackle on-campus antisemitism in the weeks after Hamas launched its Oct. 7 attack caused several Israeli alumni to cut ties with the prestigious institution.
The gory mess was delivered by “external community members in solidarity with NYU students,” independent journalist Talia Jane reported, and was accompanied by a note: “Linda Mills: Your administration is complicit in genocide. Blood on your hands. Long live Gaza.”
At Columbia University, students who bolted themselves inside Hamilton Hall the day before continued to stand their ground — with some protesters carrying Palestinian flags and waltzing on the roof of the academic building.
“Yesterday we continued the revolutionary legacy of the anti-imperialist students that came before us. Students who refused to pay for death, destruction and genocide,” a student told the crowd, alleging that the university is denying protesters food, water and bathroom access.
“We are reclaiming our right to this campus. We are liberating territory.”
The crowd took over the building Monday as administrators ordered them to vacate their tents.
The aggressive protesters smashed windows and dangled signs around the building, which they’ve dubbed “Hind’s Hall” in honor of Hind Rajab, a 6-year-old Palestinian girl who was killed during the Middle Eastern conflict.
“Our necessary escalation last night was in response to the repression and violence from our administration. We were victorious,” the protester continued.
Columbia University failed to rein in the disruptive protests Monday, even after instituting a deadline for the crowds to vacate their mini-tent city on the campus lawn.
The Ivy League has since announced it would hand out suspensions to any students still defying the orders — which would prevent some from graduating next month — which the crowd considered as a “siege.”
“They have locked us in on this campus, they have locked the campus down, they have threatened us with suspension, they prevent us from using the bathroom, they prevent us from getting food, they prevent us from receiving water,” a demonstrator shouted to the crowd.
“This is a siege. They want to starve us to keep us from staying and holding our ground.”
“The administration is scared of the students and frankly, they should be.”