A handful of Cooper Union Jewish students barricaded themselves inside the university’s library on Wednesday when pro-Palestinian protesters broke through security and aggressively stormed the building’s doors.
An elderly Jewish man at an East Village institution recounted the terrifying moment he saw the protesters slamming anti-Zionist posters against windows and yelled “anti-Semitic rhetoric” just a few feet away.
“When they started knocking on the door, my heart started pounding. I am crying. I thought if the door wasn’t locked — I don’t know what would have happened,” the student, who asked to remain anonymous, told The Post.
“I don’t want to speculate what will happen. It just makes me too nervous. I was really scared at that moment.”
The protesters – carrying Palestinian flags and “Zionism Hands off our Universities” signs – had scheduled a 1pm demonstration outside the 7 East 7th Street building when they decided to move through the interior.
It appeared they were heading to university President Laura Spark’s office to demand she condemn Israel’s attack on Gaza civilians when they circled into the library, the student said.
A group of several dozen protesters stormed past weak security attempts to prevent them from climbing the stairs chanting “Free Palestine,” video show.
Pro-Palestinian protesters rally, push posters against glass and knock on Cooper Union library doors.X / @thislouis
Security on the 7th floor of the library locked the doors when they heard the group approaching, preventing them from entering, but not stopping them from banging against the wall and continuing their chant.
Some of the 11 Jewish students gathered inside Cooper Union Library called 911 or called relatives who called police for help.
The NYPD was stationed at the demonstration around the clock, a spokeswoman said.
No arrests or summonses were issued, and people left the building without incident.
An elderly Jew recalled being “absolutely terrified” when the demonstration moved into the building. @StopAntisemites/ X
It is unclear whether any officers entered the building during the demonstration, although student witnesses claimed police never arrived because the university told them not to get involved.
Instead, a school administrator offered to escort the students out the back entrance of the building – which President Sparks allegedly chose when he heard the protesters approach him.
“If they were scared, if the president was so scared that he left the building, then the police should have been called,” the student said.
“Why did they leave the students in the building without police protection when the president of the school who was also targeted left himself?”
Video shows protesters getting past security who tried to stop them from climbing the stairs.X / @JakeyKluger
The 11 Jewish students chose to stay inside and walked out of the protest.
As they walked out, pro-Palestinian protesters stood silently outside displaying their signs.
According to the university’s media relations manager, the school closed the library for about 20 minutes while the protest moved through the building.
“Several students who were previously in the Library remain at this time,” Kim Newman said in an email.
NYPD is at scheduled protests all the time.X / @JakeyKluger
Newman did not immediately confirm the students’ claims that the university prevented police from intervening in the demonstration once it moved indoors or whether Sparks fled from the protesters.
Although he admitted he wasn’t sure if the protesters were trying to get in through the locked doors, the senior said he was disappointed by the university’s actions.
“I think we are all actually scared. We are not comfortable going back to school tomorrow,” he said.
“It was crazy when they bypassed the security guards, they still didn’t want the police to come in. So that doesn’t make sense to me. It doesn’t make sense to me that once the door was locked — which means they obviously felt we were in danger — they still wouldn’t let the police in … It confuses me that once [the President] go, we’re still there and they won’t let the police in.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
