New York University graduation ceremony held at Yankee Stadium
NEW YORK (WABC) -- While some university-wide commencement ceremonies were canceled because of pro-Palestinian protests, thousands of New York University graduates celebrated Wednesday with a ceremony at Yankee Stadium.
Some schools, including Columbia University, canceled its school-wide ceremonies, but NYU chose to move forward despite weeks of pro-Palestinian protests.
"I think all of us were extremely frustrated at some point thinking that we might not have it, but I'm glad NYU was able to figure out how to do this safely for everyone, so that we could get to enjoy it," said NYU graduate Elena Oliveira.
The ceremony went off without disruptions, and toward the end of the ceremony, several dozen pro-Palestinian students gathered outside.
But tempers flared as some students and parents found themselves standing outside in the rain -- long after the ceremony had started.
"This is a disgrace, NYU, this is how you manage graduation for students?" said parent Alan Bootehsaz. "This is a total disgrace, we have been in line for two and a half hours."
Some students and parents say there were not enough metal detectors, which delayed the security screenings.
The Trimble family said they were able to get in in about 20 minutes, but after two and half hours, their daughter grew tired of waiting in line and chose to leave all together.
"I'm not sure what they're achieving with this, but I'm so disappointed, this was her dream school, and she can't even see her own ceremony," said parent Ana Trimble.
Eyewitness News reached out to NYU for a statement but has not yet heard back.
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