NYC Mayor: We Will Not Be a City of Lawlessness

On Sunday, Mayor Eric Adams of New York City firmly criticized the continuing protests at Columbia University, vowing that the city “will not be a city of lawlessness.”

“I am horrified and disgusted with the antisemitism being spewed at and around the Columbia University campus — like the example of a young woman holding a sign with an arrow pointing to Jewish students stating ‘Al-Qasam’s Next Targets,’ or another where a woman is literally yelling ‘We are Hamas,’ or another where groups of students are chanting ‘We don’t want no Zionists here’ — and I condemn this hate speech in the strongest of terms. Supporting a terrorist organization that aims to kill Jews is sickening and despicable. As I have repeatedly said, hate has no place in our city, and I have instructed the NYPD to investigate any violation of law that is reported. Rest assured, the NYPD will not hesitate to arrest anyone who is found to be breaking the law,” said Adams.

“We will not be a city of lawlessness, and those professional agitators seeking to seize the ongoing conflict in the Middle East to sow chaos and division in our city will not succeed,” he clarified.

He clarified that “Columbia University is a private institution on private property, which means the NYPD cannot have a presence on campus unless specifically requested by senior university officials. The NYPD has an increased presence of officers situated around the campus to protect students and all New Yorkers on nearby public streets, and they stand ready to respond if another request is made by the university, as they did on Thursday, when the NYPD successfully cleared encampments on Columbia’s South Lawn without any injuries.”

“I urge Columbia’s senior administration officials to improve and maintain an open line of communication with the NYPD to ensure the safety of all students and staff on campus, as well as for the safety of all New Yorkers,” the Mayor continued.

““I know the conflict in the Middle East has left many of us grieving and angry. New Yorkers have every right to express their sorrow, but that heartbreak does not give anyone the right to harass or threaten others or to physically harm someone they disagree with.”

“As mayor of the city with the largest Jewish community in the world outside of Israel, the pain these protests are causing Jews across the globe is not lost on me, especially as we start Passover tomorrow evening. I also see and hear the pain of those protesting in support of innocent lives being lost in Gaza. In this moment of heightened tension around the world, we stand united against hate,” Adams said.

Mayor Adams made his statement in response to an incident where the Chabad rabbi of Columbia University and a group of Jewish students felt compelled to leave the campus for their safety amid a pro-Hamas demonstration on Motzoei Shabbos.

Footage circulated on social media depicted a female student questioning why the anti-Israel demonstrators were trailing them, with another student emphasizing the need for solidarity to ensure safety.

During the demonstration on Saturday evening, protesters made attempts to breach the campus gate, chanting phrases such as “Break da lock,” “Someone torch it,” “Pick the lock,” and “It’s just a lock.”

Earlier in the week, the New York Police Department arrested over 100 individuals on preliminary charges of criminal trespass as they intervened at Columbia University to disperse a pro-Palestinian Arab protest that had begun the previous day.

In recent times, Columbia University has witnessed a surge in antisemitic occurrences following Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7th and the subsequent conflict in Gaza.

Back in February, flyers displaying antisemitic imagery, featuring a skunk adorned with the Israeli flag, were discovered on the Columbia University campus.

{Matzav.com}