On Monday morning, Gov. Kathy Hochul and Cornell University President Martha Pollock met with Jewish students after threats had been made over a university discussion forum on Sunday. An announcement was posted to the university website on Sunday. The university's Hillel program also released a statement, which urged students to avoid the 104west building housing the Kosher dining hall, despite added security being there as a precaution. Authorities are investigating the threats.
This morning, @GovKathyHochul and President Martha E. Pollack met with students at Cornell’s Center for Jewish Living to offer their support. “No one should be afraid to walk from their dorm or their dining hall to a classroom,” Gov. Hochul said. “That is a basic right.” pic.twitter.com/aAYRziNbL4
— Cornell University (@Cornell) October 30, 2023
The statement posted to the university website read, with original emphasis:
Dear members of the Cornell community,
Earlier today, a series of horrendous, antisemitic messages threatening violence to our Jewish community and specifically naming 104 West — the home of the Center for Jewish Living — was posted on a website unaffiliated with Cornell. Law enforcement was immediately notified.
At this time, Cornell Police (CUPD) are on the scene and investigating. Police will continue to remain on site to ensure our students and community members are safe.
Cornell Police have also notified the FBI of a potential hate crime.
Threats of violence are absolutely intolerable, and we will work to ensure that the person or people who posted them are punished to the full extent of the law. Our immediate focus is on keeping the community safe; we will continue to prioritize that.
We will not tolerate antisemitism at Cornell. During my time as president, I have repeatedly denounced bigotry and hatred, both on and off our campus. The virulence and destructiveness of antisemitism is real and deeply impacting our Jewish students, faculty and staff, as well as the entire Cornell community. This incident highlights the need to combat the forces that are dividing us and driving us toward hate. This cannot be what defines us at Cornell.
All of our community deserves to feel safe at Cornell. If you become aware of any threats to your safety or to the safety of the community, please contact CUPD at 607-255-1111. We also encourage you to download the RAVE Guardian app, which will enable you to report any safety concerns to CUPD in real time.
In the days ahead, we will work to reinforce a culture of trust, respect and safety at Cornell. Regardless of your beliefs, backgrounds or perspectives, I urge all of you to come together with the empathy and support for each other that we so greatly need in this difficult time.
Townhall was also directed by the university to a statement from Cornell University Police Department (CUPD). "The safety and security of the entire Cornell community continues to be our top priority. We are taking threats very seriously and working with the FBI, State Police and other agencies to investigate--we continue to have an enhanced law enforcement presence on campus to keep our community safe. We have increased patrols and arranged additional security for our Jewish students and organizations on and off campus, and the university is in constant communication with these groups," the statement read.
Before she appeared at the university on Monday for a photo op, Hochul also posted about the incident from her own official X account on Sunday night expressing concern about the events. Hochul still felt the need to mention the "strong belief in free speech and the right to peaceful assembly."
Earlier this evening, I spoke to leaders representing @SUNY, @CUNY, and private colleges and universities across New York State. I told them @nyspolice and the whole of state government will continue to support their efforts to keep their students and campus communities safe.
— Governor Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) October 30, 2023
I also reiterated our strong belief in free speech and the right to peaceful assembly, but made clear that we will have zero tolerance for acts of violence or those who intimidate and harass others through words or actions.
— Governor Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) October 30, 2023
The Cornell Center for Jewish Living (CJL) made several posts about Hochul and Pollock's event from their Facebook account on Monday expressing thanks to the governor and university president. Another post sharing news of the threats, from Sunday, invited people to give financially to the center.
"To anyone who is concerned about safety at the CJL and 104West!, please know that police are stationed at the complex 24/7, and meals are being served as usual. While we consider these to be serious threats, we will not be intimidated by them," the most recent post read in part.
The university did not post about the incident from its X account until Monday. A post, however, did appear on Sunday to do with Halloween events, which resulted in many people expressing their outrage over the lack of a response being posted to that platform.
As of Monday afternoon, over 500 replies have appeared, and many of them having nothing to do with the actual post in question to do with the "Spooktacular time on the Hill" event that took place on campus.
This is what one of our nation’s most elite universities chooses to post while “horrendous, antisemitic” threats are made against the Cornell University Jewish community?
— Joe Chenelly 🇺🇸 (@jchenelly) October 30, 2023
We’re used to other things being celebrated in Cornell, right @RickfordRussell?
— Shahar (@still_shahar) October 30, 2023
At least one reply referenced Professor Russell Rickford, a history professor who requested to go on leave after video surfaced of him saying that the October 7 attack that Hamas unleashed was "exhilarating" and "energizing."
There were 1,400 Israelis killed as a result of that terrorist attack from Hamas. It was the bloodiest day in the country's history, with the most Jews killed since the Holocaust. Men, women, and children alike were murdered in horrific ways. This included babies and elderly Holocaust victims. Hamas didn't merely target their victims for murder, though, but also for rape, torture, and kidnapping. The official Israel X account released images of babies who had been beheaded and burned not long after the attack, as Townhall covered at the time. Americans are also among the dead and those taken hostage.
More details of extremely disturbing accounts of what Hamas subjected their victims to continue to come out.
.@Cornell announced that history prof Russell Rickford, who called the Hamas massacre of 1,400 Israelis "exhilarating" & "energizing," will take a leave of absence after almost 11,000 signed a petition demanding his termination. WATCH Rickford's rant https://t.co/hVHGD04AOP… pic.twitter.com/LrCgq8RY53
— Canary Mission (@canarymission) October 25, 2023
Townhall reached out to Cornell University for a comment on an update on Professor Rickford's status, but was told by a media relations employee that "to your question on the threats made, President Pollack's statement, which went to our community yesterday, is all we have to share at this time."
A follow-up email, about the overall threats at the university, also mentioned "please note that Cornell’s Student and Campus Life and the Dean of Students Office have been meeting regularly with individuals and student groups. Instructors are talking individually with students and offering flexibility; a zoom option may be temporarily available in some courses, depending on the constraints of the course. Mental health and other support resources are also available." Resources such as the Public Safety Communications Center and RAVE Guardian were also mentioned. "Anyone with information about threats made against members of our community is asked to come forward. Anonymous reports can be made through the Silent Witness Program," the statement continued to read.
Among those calling out the rise in anti-semitism on campus has been Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY), even as it's put him at odds with fellow House Democrats. He shared the statement and commended Pollock for relesing it.
I commend the President of Cornell University, Martha Pollack, for issuing a crystal-clear condemnation of antisemitism. Credit where credit is due.
— Ritchie Torres (@RitchieTorres) October 30, 2023
Here is the statement: pic.twitter.com/dSQ1JRbPkI
The Biden administration, over three weeks after the October 7 attack, announced new actions on Monday against anti-semitism on college campuses. A post about the move came from Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, which the White House X account reposted. Both the president's official and political X accounts neglected to mention the announcement, though.
A rise in anti-semitic and pro-Hamas statements and behavior was prevalant on college campuses throghout the country almost from the start following the October 7 attack. During last Monday's press briefing, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre acknowledged that such incidents were happening "across the country," but responded in part that "I’m not going to get into the specifics."
The rise in antisemitic threats of violence against Jewish students in schools and on college campuses is unwarranted and unacceptable.
— Douglas Emhoff (@SecondGentleman) October 30, 2023
Today, the Biden-Harris Administration announced actions to track hate-related rhetoric online and provide further federal resources to…
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