Students and faculty at Cornell University are holding a “Jewish Unity” rally on Sunday to protest rising antisemitism at the Ithaca campus.
The fight against antisemitism will come just days after engineering student Patrick Dai pleaded guilty Wednesday to threatening to kill Jewish students on campus last October.
“After the horrific 10/7 attacks, I expected an outpouring of support and solidarity when I returned to campus. Instead, I encountered dehumanizing rhetoric, support for the terrorists, and students being accosted on campus and threatened with intimidation and violence solely because of our Jewish identity,” Amanda Silberstein, one of the student organizers, said in a statement to The Post.
“We stand together to affirm that the Jewish community at Cornell will remain strong, steadfast, and resilient, and will not only survive but thrive, as the Jewish people have done so many times before us throughout history.”
A report card on campus antisemitism published by the Anti-Defamation League on Thursday gave the Ivy League a lowly “D” grade for combatting Jewish bigotry.
One of Cornell’s professors, Russel Rickford, said at a campus rally last year that he was “exhilarated” by the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attacks against Israel.
Yossi Israel, a student from Israel pursuing a masters degree in business administration, said he would hear statements like “Zionism is disease” and other antisemitic comments even before the war broke out, but paid no attention to the chatter.
But the students said he was startled when classmates posted lies and antisemitic comments after Oct. 7, and pro-Palestinian students marched through the business school building and called for an “Intifada.”
“We are having this rally to combat antisemitism and show faculty and other groups in Cornell that we will not tolerate this anymore. Jewish students and their safety will not be mocked,” he said.
He said the rally is registered and supported by Cornell’s administration.
Some faculty members are also showing up.
“I will be attending and speaking at the rally to show my support for Jewish students on campus, many of whom feel abandoned by the administration and faculty,” said Cornell law professor William Jacobson, founder of Equal Protect.org, a right-leaning civil rights group.
“Now more than ever, it is important to show students they are not alone, and that there are faculty who are willing to stand with them in this difficult time.”
Meanwhile, New York Schools Chancellor David Banks announced Thursday that he will testify before the House of Representatives on May 8 to discuss what the city public school system is doing to address antisemitism.
He noted there have been unfortunate incidents, including at his alma mater, Hillcrest HS in Queens, where a Jewish teacher was targeted for attending a pro-Israel rally and hid in a locked office from enraged students fearing for her safety.
“But it’s not the only place where we have issues and challenges…. This has been a very emotional fraught issue,” Banks said during a press briefing, referring to the Hamas-Israel war.
Banks insisted educators are addressing antisemitism and other bigotry throughout the school system.
“The issue of hate and violence is something we should be concerned about. I believe antisemitism is the number one hate issue in the nation. We’re doing our best to meet the moment here in New York City and in our schools,” the chancellor said.
