Columbia faculty hold 'emergency vigil,' urge students to wear mask, skip class to protest Trump

A group of people continued marching and circling around the main gate of Columbia University on Monday afternoon, banging loud drums and chanting, "Long live the intifada."

Their actions come shortly after Columbia University professors held what they called an "emergency vigil" in response to the college's agreement to implement a host of policy changes, including overhauling its rules for protests and conducting an immediate review of its Middle Eastern studies department following demands from the Trump administration. 

Though the arrest of prominent anti-Israel activist and legal permanent resident Mahmoud Khalil by federal immigration officials was mentioned, activists used the opportunity to speak about numerous grievances with the school. 

"Now, the Trump administration is attacking Columbia as a target to coerce other universities as well to fall in line with the authoritarian regime of the Trump administration," Risa L. Lieberwitz, professor of labor and employment law at Cornell University, said during the news conference. 

"She said she knew that this was her responsibility to make sure that children on her campus were safe," McMahon said. "She wanted to make sure there was no discrimination of any kind. She wanted to address any systemic issues that were identified relative to the antisemitism on campus."

FOX News' Sandy Ibrahim and The Associated Press contributed to this report.