Students at the Ivy League college staged some of the biggest and most intense campus protests against Israel’s military incursion in Gaza last term.
Everybody was watching the protesters who gathered outside the school gates on Tuesday, the first day of classes, to see if they would match the size of the previous demonstrations.
Police described the rallies as “peaceful” but stated that at least two people had been arrested on Tuesday.
On Tuesday morning, one could hear pro-Palestinian demonstrators from several streets away, many of their faces hidden by traditional keffiyeh scarves.
Outside Columbia University’s renowned iron gates, they marched in circles and screamed “Free Palestine” while beating drums.
While they waited in line to have their identification rigorously examined before being allowed to enter school, students and staff watched the demonstration from the other side of metal barricades.
The largest disturbance inside happened on Tuesday at midday, according to News. Red paint was allegedly thrown on the Alma Mater statue outside Low Memorial Library by demonstrators. A crew purportedly closed off the area as they cleaned the statue.
