Police threaten use of batons, chemical agents as protest at canceled Yiannopoulos event turns violent
Police at the University of California at Berkeley have placed the campus on lockdown and asked residents to stay away from the area amid a tense protest at a planned speaking event by controversial far-right writer and speaker Milo Yiannopoulos this evening.
A shelter-in-place order has been issued for the area due to the protest, which police described as a "dangerous situation." They announced a dispersal order on Twitter at 6:45 p.m., but as of 6:55 p.m. there were few officers on the plaza to enforce it.
The event barricades were breached and used to smash the windows of the campus bookstore, where the entrance to the event was located. A large fire has been burning in front of the building. It briefly spread to a nearby tree.
The barricades directly in front of the bookstore were dismantled by protesters in masks. Many from the crowd have gathered on the bookstore's steps.
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