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WASHINGTON: An incident on Wednesday morning raised fears that the pro-Palestinian protests across US campuses could take an ugly turn.
The incident happened at City College, New York, where a group of police officers re-raised the American flag after protesters replaced it with a Palestinian flag at the Harlem Heights campus.
Videos circulated by mainstream and social media showed members of the New York Police Department (NYPD) standing atop the base of the flagpole after ripping the Palestinian flag from the rope and tossing it to the ground.
Later, NYPD Deputy Commissioner Kaz Daughtry praised the officers for acting promptly to restore Old Glory, another name for the US flag.
“An incredible scene and proud moment as we assisted at City College, New York, in restoring order on campus, culminating in raising Old Glory once again on their campus flagpole,” he wrote on X.
The Palestinian flag had been flying at the college since last week when protesters set up an encampment on campus, but this was the first incident of flag-swapping.
On Tuesday night, protesters clashed with police on campus, engaging in altercations with officers who attempted to disperse the protest.
On Wednesday, the college announced it would hold remote classes following overnight clashes between protesters and police. Authorities also confirmed that 173 people were arrested at City College, with an additional 109 arrests at Columbia University on Tuesday night.
On the West Coast, the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), has canceled all classes for the day following an incident where counter-protesters attacked demonstrators who were protesting what students and a UN expert have termed a genocide in Gaza.
In a message to the UCLA community, school officials wrote: “Due to the distress caused by the violence that occurred on Royce Quad late last night and early this morning, all classes are cancelled today.”
Despite police actions, protesters remain undeterred as demonstrations have erupted at colleges and universities nationwide. At some campuses, protests have evolved into around-the-clock encampments.
Protests have persisted for over a week at Yale University, New York University, Harvard University, University of Texas at Austin, and University of Southern California.
On Tuesday, UN Secretary-General António Guterres defended the students’ right to express their views but urged all sides to reduce tensions.
Published in Dawn, May 2nd, 2024
