On Friday afternoon, hundreds of pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched to the Brooklyn Museum, pitched tents in the lobby, and raised a banner reading “Free Palestine” from the building’s roof before police arrived to make arrests.
When fights broke out in the crowd outside the museum, New York City police tackled and punched a few protesters while other protestors threw plastic bottles at them and yelled obscenities. On the steps of the stately Beaux Arts museum, the second largest in the city, other demonstrators brandished banners, waved Palestinian flags, and let out loud cries.
The Brooklyn Nets’ home arena, Barclays Center, is across the street from where the rally got underway on Friday afternoon. The demonstrators then marched about a mile to the museum while beating drums and chanting.
The organization Within Our Lifetime was among the organizers who urged supporters to “flood” and “de-occupy” the museum. They claimed they intended to seize control of the structure until officials “disclose and divest” from any financial holdings connected to Israel’s activities in Gaza.
Social media videos showed protesters finding alternate entrances to the museum and guards attempting to keep the throng at bay.
