Cornell Students and Student Group Suspended for Disrupting Event

From a statement released Tuesday by the Cornell Interim President:

The Pathways to Peace event Monday night provided an educational discussion on the complex history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and negotiations. Cornell successfully hosted a panel of esteemed former Middle East leaders and U.S. ambassadors who shared historical perspectives and unique insight for achieving a peaceful future. The hundreds of members of the Cornell community who came to Bailey Hall to listen, learn, and respectfully debate experienced an evening of information, introspection, and critical self-examination.

Unfortunately, the event was marred by disappointing disruptions. The ability of speakers to present opinions and ideas, and to engage in thoughtful dialogue with the university community, is critical to the educational process and fundamental to university life. Individuals attempting to shout down speakers and disrupt dialogue seriously compromise our values. Those who disrupted the Pathways to Peace event were swiftly removed.

Cornell University Police identified 17 people responsible for this unacceptable disruption. Nine students will be referred to the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards for appropriate action, including the imposition of interim measures up to and including suspension. Staff members involved in the disruption will be referred for disciplinary actions through Human Resources. Outside disrupters will be issued persona non grata status, barring them from Cornell’s campus.

Additionally, for advertising and organizing this disruption, Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), a student-run organization, faces suspension as a registered campus organization.

Events like Pathways to Peace represent our ambition to embrace diverse viewpoints and engage in difficult conversations. Cornell must be a place where all voices can be heard and none are silenced.

For more, see the Ithaca Voice (Judy Lucas):

Protestors criticized the university for inviting former Israeli Foreign Minister Tziporah Livni to participate in the panel, calling Livni a war criminal. Livni, a former center-left Israeli leader, was previously accused of war crimes in a suit filed by a UK pro-Palestinian group for her role in a major military offensive in Gaza in 2008….

The event featured Livni, former Palestinian Authority leader and prime minister Salam Fayyad and former U.S. ambassador to Israel Daniel B. Shapiro. The panel was moderated by retired diplomat Ryan Crocker, who served as U.S. ambassador to a host of Arab nations.

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