Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) slammed Democrat New York City Mayor Eric Adams and the presidents of Columbia Univeristy.
Ocasio-Cortez responded to a post on X which referred to remarks made by Adams during a press conference earlier, in which he said the protest at Columbia University had been “co-opted by professional outside agitators.”
“If any kid is hurt tonight, responsibility will fall on the mayor and univ presidents,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote. “Other leaders and schools have found a safe, de-escalatory path. This is the opposite of leadership and endangers public safety.”
Ocasio-Cortez added that it was a “nightmare in the making.”
“I urge the Mayor to reverse course,” Ocasio-Cortez added.
Officers from the NYPD dressed in riot gear staged a raid of the campus and began removing anti-Israel protesters from Hamilton Hall, which protesters seized control of in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
Anti-Israel protesters were seen on video footage smashing the glass doors of Hamilton Hall, an academic building on campus, carrying barricades into the building, and hanging pro-Palestinian banners from the windows.
Hours after the building was occupied, the university announced that it was restricting access to its campus for the remainder of the spring semester and that students occupying the building would “face expulsion.”
On Monday, Columbia University had given anti-Israel protesters a 2:00 p.m. deadline to leave the encampment that was established on the campus.
In a statement on Tuesday, Columbia University said it was “left with no choice” after anti-Israel protesters occupied Hamilton Hall and “vandalized” and “blockaded” the building.