I am a Cornell alum, Class of 1979. I wrote this letter, with my name redacted
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People,
I am a member of the Arts Class of 1979. I read with dismay the supine generic statements issued on behalf of Cornell University in response to the massacre on October 7, 2023 by Hamas in the State of Israel (the "Massacre"). Cornell has issued multiple responses to the Massacre, all weak, and diluting the message by references to other horrors, even natural disasters. An earthquake is not a massacre, even if it causes large-scale death. For example, your October 10, 2023 response stated, in relevant part:
The loss of human life is always tragic, whether caused by human actions such as terrorism, war or mass shootings, or by natural disasters such as earthquakes, fires or floods. Regrettably, there are so often horrific events around the world, and because it is impossible to respond to each of them, there is no way to acknowledge the pain that different members of our community feel when such events occur. Just last month, we saw atrocities in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, and this past weekend there was a terrible earthquake in Afghanistan. Today, as we mourn the loss of life in the Middle East, I want also to call out events like these and acknowledge the distress of our community members impacted by them.
This is in stark contrast to the missive sent on or about May 29, 2020 to the killing of George Floyd by Martha Pollack, President which stated in relevant part:
I am heartbroken, angry and frankly sickened by the recent killing of George Floyd, and before him, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and others whose deaths are less well publicized.
The amount of pain in the Black community is unfathomable, especially as these are occurring in the midst of a pandemic that is having such a disproportionate impact on communities of color.
Decent people and institutions cannot stand silent while such violence against our fellow citizens continues.
I want to make clear, both personally and on behalf of Cornell, that we will do all we can as a university to address this scourge of racism. We will address it directly in our educational programs, in our research and in our engagement and related activities, working through the ways we know best to push for a world that is equitable and kind; where people do not have to fear for their lives because of the color of their skin; and where everyone has the same opportunities to grow, thrive and enjoy their lives.
Dean Jayawardhana of the College of Arts and Sciences, wrote, on or about June 3, 2020 in part:
America remains united in pain and outrage over the depraved killing of a black man by a white police officer. And as African Americans from all walks of life can affirm, racist attitudes and assumptions continue to bubble above the surface in many ways large and small.
The contrast in Cornell's public statements between the response to the George Floyd killing and the Massacre could not be more stark. Fear of violence should not place a role, nor should the wrong image of Jews as "privileged."
The leadership of Cornell regularly beseeches alumni for donations. Is this anyway to seek donations; to show indifference to a brutal massacre, and ensuing campus antisemitism?
Where is the courage that Cornell showed, in 1865, by admitting blacks, women, and frankly all people at a time where membership in respectable society depended upon being white, male and well-to-do? That is the Cornell of which I am proud. By contrast, these statements by University officialdom read as if they are terrified of the response. I do not like to think of the leaders of my Alma Mater as a "quivering mass of jello."
I am outraged and, to quote Dean Jayawardhana, "heartbroken."
jbgusa '79
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People,
I am a member of the Arts Class of 1979. I read with dismay the supine generic statements issued on behalf of Cornell University in response to the massacre on October 7, 2023 by Hamas in the State of Israel (the "Massacre"). Cornell has issued multiple responses to the Massacre, all weak, and diluting the message by references to other horrors, even natural disasters. An earthquake is not a massacre, even if it causes large-scale death. For example, your October 10, 2023 response stated, in relevant part:
The loss of human life is always tragic, whether caused by human actions such as terrorism, war or mass shootings, or by natural disasters such as earthquakes, fires or floods. Regrettably, there are so often horrific events around the world, and because it is impossible to respond to each of them, there is no way to acknowledge the pain that different members of our community feel when such events occur. Just last month, we saw atrocities in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, and this past weekend there was a terrible earthquake in Afghanistan. Today, as we mourn the loss of life in the Middle East, I want also to call out events like these and acknowledge the distress of our community members impacted by them.
This is in stark contrast to the missive sent on or about May 29, 2020 to the killing of George Floyd by Martha Pollack, President which stated in relevant part:
I am heartbroken, angry and frankly sickened by the recent killing of George Floyd, and before him, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and others whose deaths are less well publicized.
The amount of pain in the Black community is unfathomable, especially as these are occurring in the midst of a pandemic that is having such a disproportionate impact on communities of color.
Decent people and institutions cannot stand silent while such violence against our fellow citizens continues.
I want to make clear, both personally and on behalf of Cornell, that we will do all we can as a university to address this scourge of racism. We will address it directly in our educational programs, in our research and in our engagement and related activities, working through the ways we know best to push for a world that is equitable and kind; where people do not have to fear for their lives because of the color of their skin; and where everyone has the same opportunities to grow, thrive and enjoy their lives.
Dean Jayawardhana of the College of Arts and Sciences, wrote, on or about June 3, 2020 in part:
America remains united in pain and outrage over the depraved killing of a black man by a white police officer. And as African Americans from all walks of life can affirm, racist attitudes and assumptions continue to bubble above the surface in many ways large and small.
The contrast in Cornell's public statements between the response to the George Floyd killing and the Massacre could not be more stark. Fear of violence should not place a role, nor should the wrong image of Jews as "privileged."
The leadership of Cornell regularly beseeches alumni for donations. Is this anyway to seek donations; to show indifference to a brutal massacre, and ensuing campus antisemitism?
Where is the courage that Cornell showed, in 1865, by admitting blacks, women, and frankly all people at a time where membership in respectable society depended upon being white, male and well-to-do? That is the Cornell of which I am proud. By contrast, these statements by University officialdom read as if they are terrified of the response. I do not like to think of the leaders of my Alma Mater as a "quivering mass of jello."
I am outraged and, to quote Dean Jayawardhana, "heartbroken."
jbgusa '79
