Cops including two high-ranking NYPD officials pulled down and tossed away a Palestinian flag and proudly hoisted an American flag after evicting protesters encamped at City College in Harlem, video posted by the department shows.
Kaz Daughtry, the NYPD’s Deputy Commissioner for Operations, posted the video early Wednesday.
#HAPPENINGNOW: An incredible scene and proud moment as we have assisted @CityCollegeNY in restoring order on campus, culminating in raising Old Glory once again on their campus flagpole. 🇺🇸@NYPDPC @NYPD1stDep @NYPDChiefOfDept @NYPDChiefPatrol @NYPDnews pic.twitter.com/XZWFmvXcUs
— NYPD Deputy Commissioner, Operations Kaz Daughtry (@NYPDDaughtry) May 1, 2024
In the video, one plainclothes officer jumps up and rips down the Palestinian flag then hands it to a second cop who tosses it to the ground. Daughtry and Tarik Sheppard, the NYPD’s deputy commissioner for public information, then participate in hooking an American flag to the pole in its place.
The moment appears to have been captured by an NYPD photographer as credentialed media were blocked from accessing the encampment.
At the end of the video, Daughtry and Sheppard smile and pose for the camera next to the flag pole.
“An incredible scene and proud moment as we have assisted @CityCollegeNY in restoring order on campus, culminating in raising Old Glory once again on their campus flagpole,” Daughtry tweeted alongside the video.
Palestinian flags have been raised during protests that have unfolded at City College, Columbia University, NYU and campuses elsewhere in recent weeks.
After cops cleared the encampment at Columbia on Tuesday night, they turned to City College and cleared an encampment there, making an unknown number of arrests for lower level charges like trespassing.