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NEW YORK—A large-scale protest of about 1,000 pro-Palestinian people ended with at least 24 arrests for obstructing traffic and disorderly conduct.
The protesters gathered at about 4 p.m. at Hunters College, then marched in circles around the Metropolitan Museum of Art where the Met Gala was taking place. Hundreds of police officers were guarding the museum.
Crowd control police with anti-riot gear sent out warnings that protesters would be arrested if they kept blocking the middle of the street and didn’t move to the sidewalks.
Many of the protesters then ran away and regrouped to circle around the museum.
By 8 p.m. there were still about 800 protesters. They dispersed into smaller groups, the biggest group having about 200 people, and at about 9 p.m. the protest faded.
A few people were handing out materials calling for a communist revolution, signing people up to their email lists, and offering lessons while supporting the pro-Palestinian march.
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Protesters said they were upset with Israel’s bombing of Gaza and civilian casualties there.
“All CUNYS are meeting with us, as well as Columbia,” Niha, a student protester who declined to share her last name, said.
“There are no safe areas in Palestine,” she added.
Danny Shaw, a professor of international relations at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said the group was “trying to stop a genocide against the Palestinian people.”
“If global opinion mattered we would have stopped 76 years ago, it’s gonna take unity … critical education which they’ll never teach us in the dominating institutions of society,” Mr. Shaw told The Epoch Times.
Some said they wanted to remain peaceful, but other protesters got in the faces of police, insulting them, flashing cameras in their face, shouting at them, and spray-painting police cars.
“I’ve been to many many protests and there was no aggression from any of the pro-Palestine protesters, they have been shuffled by people who were waving the Israeli flag, I’ve been bumped into on purpose, I’ve been screamed at,” a German woman supporting the protests said.
Police Promise Swift Response
NYPD Deputy Commissioner Kaz Daughtry told The Epoch Times that if the protesters committed any kind of crime, such as blocking traffic or closing down bridges or tunnels, or trying to get into the gala, police would take action.
“So far we have 25 arrests, 24 from the protests and one was a person who was throwing eggs out the window at the officers,” he said. “We are confident that the Met Gala is gonna go off without a hitch. They’re still trying to interrupt it. There’s about 800 of them walking around in circles trying to interrupt the Met Gala.”
The deputy commissioner said the pro-Palestinian group tried to force its way into the Met Gala but police had fortified the area and did not let anyone in who did not have permission.
The Met Gala, a fundraiser for the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute, is a major event in the fashion world. Many high-profile celebrities attend the event, and fans come to the area to see them.
“They’re still trying any way to slip through the cracks,” Mr. Daughtry said. “However, the NYPD has a really good, robust, comprehensive plan. And we’ve been planning for this for quite some time. And, this is the result of a perfect plan in place. So far, not one of them has gotten through to interrupt the Met Gala and we’re not going to tolerate lawlessness in our city. We’re not going to tolerate individuals trying to come over and disrupt the Met Gala.
“So we‘ll be out here all night until the Met Gala is over and then we’ll deal with the protesters later. We have more than enough officers to deal with the 800 protesters out here,” he said.
Assaults and Vandalism
The Epoch Times witnessed the assault of a Jewish man who was opposing the protest, and many small arguments and altercations that occurred under the tense atmosphere.
The young Jewish man was going to Central Park to exercise when he passed through a protesting group of about 50 people and repeatedly said “Am Yisrael Chai,” which means “The people of Israel live.”
The protesters threw water at him and insulted him, and he was then confronted by at least 10 protesters and punched by a woman wearing a niqab. His AirPods flew off, and as the crowd pushed him away, he was unable to recover them. Police were not present, and they arrived at the scene after about six minutes to observe the crowd.
“Clearly the city cannot protect those who hold the other opinion,” the young Jewish man told The Epoch Times. “Thirty people started slowly gathering en masse following me. And then as seen in the footage, one person came up and punched me in the face with two fists at once. I did not engage further because Jewish people, we do not believe in violence. And we just hope to see peaceful and better times up ahead for both the Jewish Israeli and Palestinian people in Israel.”
Many protesters wore masks and some had their faces completely covered, except for the eyes.
The protest was publicized with fliers stating “Citywide Day of Rage … All Out for Gaza,” with fire and flames in the background.
Most of the protesters were young and chanted lines such as “Free Palestine,” “There is only one solution, intifada revolution,” and “NYPD will fall, NYPD KKK.”
