Emory University protest descends into chaos as Georgia cops ‘spray tear gas’, fire rubber bullets and arrest dozens of students
A protest at Emory University descended into chaos as police officers in Georgia took several people into custody.
Several students were arrested when video showed Atlanta police officers and Georgia State Troopers wrestling them to the ground.
This is the latest example of chaos in America, as pro-Palestinian protests continue at Columbia, Harvard, NYU, USC, the University of Texas, UC Berkley and Brown.
Several students were captured on video being approached by officers while “spraying tear gas” and firing rubber bullets at them.
Other clips showed officers pinning protesters to the ground while holding their hands behind their backs.
Two officers are seen restraining a student at Emory University on Thursday morning
A female protest is seen being carried out by multiple officers as she shouted and chanted
Multiple students were captured on video being approached by officers as they ‘sprayed tear gas’ and fired rubber bullets at them
A female protester was seen being dragged by several officers as she screamed and chanted.
Students occupy the lawn near the schoolyard and set up a solidarity camp in Gaza.
Protesters said they were demanding “total institutional divestment from Israeli apartheid and Cop City at all colleges and universities in Atlanta,” according to Fox 5.
It is unclear how many protesters have been arrested and whether they have been charged.
Another video showed several students handcuffed with zip ties as they sat next to a police transport vehicle on campus.
As people were stopped by police, other demonstrators were heard shouting: ‘Let them go! Let them go!’
Armed officers lined up in front of the cheering crowd and tried to get them moving.
“This was a non-violent movement, you interrupted us,” one protester told police.
A white and black banner hung from a tent that read: “DEFEND THE FOREST STOP COP CITY.”
At the bottom of the banner it read: ‘END POLICE MILITARIZATION.’
One of the arrested students was heard asking someone if they could try to find her phone, while a male protester next to her managed to raise a sign that read “Victory for the Palestinian Resistance.”
This is the latest university protest the US has taken over in recent days in response to the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas
In a statement, Gregory L. Fenves, the university’s president, said: Early this morning, several dozen protesters entered our Atlanta campus and set up an encampment on the Quad.’
“These individuals are largely unaffiliated with Emory and disrupted the university while our students were completing their classes and preparing for final exams. This is completely unacceptable.”
Patrick Quinn, a reporter with ATL News First, said he counted “at least 15 people arrested,” including students, Emory University professors and non-students.
An Emory PHD student who witnessed the escalation of the protest told Quinn, “It makes me sad, but not just for Emory University, but for the state of America.”
‘What the hell is this? It is freedom of speech,” the student added.
Another female protester screams as two Georgia State Patrol officers hold her arms. One of the officers was holding a bundle of white zip ties.
On Wednesday, hundreds of troops marched on the University of Texas at Austin before clashing with pro-Palestinian protesters.
Police arrested at least four activists – who burst into tears as they were handcuffed – after warning them they could face criminal charges if they did not disperse.
The meeting on the Austin campus was organized by the university’s Palestine Solidarity Committee (PSJ) chapter and quickly descended into anarchy.
The group said it was inspired by their “comrades” at Yale and Columbia University, where in-person classes have been canceled due to the unrest caused by “Gaza encampments.”
A protester wearing a keffiyeh is pinned to the ground as officers place cable ties around his wrist
Another female protester screams as two Georgia State Patrol officers hold her arms. One of the officers (left) is seen carrying a bundle of white zip ties