PORTLAND, Ore. — Inside Portland State University's library on Wednesday afternoon, evidence of its continued occupation by pro-Palestinian protesters remained on display — including scattered vandalism and the liberal use of furniture as makeshift barricades.
Protesters moved into the building on Monday and have not vacated it since, despite requests from university administration.
As of Wednesday afternoon, a gauntlet of signs and barricades at the Millar Library's front entrance that protesters set up earlier in the week in order to limit access were still in place.
Overnight, PSU President Ann Cudd said she'd reached a deal with representatives for protesters inside the library. According to Cudd, about 50 students agreed to the deal and left the library. But an unknown number of protesters remained, including non-students, according to Cudd.
A Portland Police Bureau news release Wednesday afternoon said police have received reports of "serious damage" to the library and blocked exits.
"We ask that people in the library keep exits clear and refrain from damaging safety infrastructure so that in the event of an emergency exits remain open and operable," PPB wrote in the news release.
PPB also described the library occupation as distinct from the protests outside, which it characterized as peaceful, while describing the library occupation tactics as "criminal, threatening and destructive."
"Those who choose to remain and engage in these unlawful actions risk arrest and prosecution," PPB wrote.
Photos from inside the building Wednesday showed some shattered panes of floor-to-ceiling glass around study areas like the Thomas C. Bielavitz Graduate Collaboration Hub.
Elsewhere in the library, graffiti could be seen on walls, doors and at least one computer screen. What may have been a fire alarm had been ripped from a wall, surrounded by gouges into the wall and a nearby door.
Less permanent were the barricades — protesters stacked tables and chairs up against doorways throughout the building in order to limit routes of ingress to the library.
PHOTOS: PSU library occupation
When KGW spoke to a protester on Tuesday, she described a mixed outlook on the damage done to the library. She said that a group not associated with the PSU protesters started causing damage after they moved in, which others tried to stop.
"I started sobbing and yelled at them and they were removed immediately. Nothing significant was damaged, but we have a steadfast resolution that nothing else will be damaged," she said. "Nothing that was damaged will compromise students' access to resources. No books have been touched, nothing has been moved."
KGW has not been able to independently verify her statement.
Outside the building, a KGW reporter took note of a broken window on the inside of the library. Multiple windows and walls outside the library had been spray-painted.
"That can be taken off with power wash," the PSU student said. "I would argue that spray paint pales in comparison to people's lives."
The PSU campus remained closed Wednesday with classes canceled due to the continued occupation of the library. Cudd said she hoped for a peaceful resolution, and said the administration was working on a plan to resume classes "as soon as possible."