NYPD releases bodycam footage from Columbia building takeover
- Pro-Palestine protesters had occupied the building
- Police cleared the hall at the request of the university
- Hundreds of students have been arrested around the country
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(NewsNation) — The New York Police Department has released bodycam footage from officers who cleared a Columbia University building occupied by pro-Palestine protesters.
Protests have been forming encampments at Columbia and other college campuses across the country with many schools turning to police to remove the gatherings and arrest protesters.
In the footage, protesters can be seen lined up in front of the doors of Hamilton Hall singing while police move barricades made of furniture before using crowbars and breaching tools to enter the hall.
They encounter more barricades inside, cutting through them before reaching the protesters, several of whom are pushed to the ground by officers.
Since last week, hundreds of protesters have been arrested across the country, with many already released from jail. It’s not clear how many will actually be charged. In Texas, prosecutors in Travis County have already dropped charges against 57 people arrested at the University of Texas at Austin campus last week.
The NYPD remains ready as Columbia and other schools in Manhattan prepare for more possible protests in the coming days.