The Coalition for Mutual Liberation staged a 24-person occupation at Day Hall, Cornell’s primary administrative building, on Thursday. CML is calling for President Martha Pollack to call a vote of the Board of Trustees — which is meeting in Ithaca from March 21 to March 22 — to divest from arms suppliers and defense companies.
According to a statement released by CML, the protesters will refuse to leave until Pollack agrees to call this vote, which CML hopes will occur at the Board of Trustees meeting on Friday.
Demonstrators donned matching red shirts with the message “Trustees: Divest” on the front and back. Many wore keffiyehs, traditional scarfs that have become a key cultural symbol of Palestinian identity.
Signs reading “Divest from death,” “You do not represent us” and “Be on the right side of history” were placed in front of Day Hall. Some posters placed on the building by demonstrators were removed by University staff and handed back to protestors, according to demonstrators.
In the fall, CML, a coalition of over 40 campus and local organizations aimed to take action against forces of imperialism and oppression, hosted similar occupations in Willard Straight Hall and Day Hall.
CML has recently petitioned for a student referendum to call for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and Cornell’s divestment from weapons manufacturers complicit in the conflict.
In a Jan. 31 post, CML argued that “arms companies complicit in the Israeli invasion of Gaza are guilty of morally reprehensible actions and are thus subject to divestment in accordance with the 2016 Standard to Guide Divestment Consideration,” referencing a set of divestment guidelines approved by the Board of Trustees just over eight years ago.
Joshua Kam grad, a Ph.D. student in the Department of Asian Studies participating in the occupation, said that the demonstration is particularly timely amid the Board of Trustees meeting in Ithaca.
“The people who can make these decisions are here in Cornell right now,” Kam said. “I think it’s one thing to hear about these stories or hear about protests or sit-ins, but it’s another thing to be in a place where we are visual and can meet and communicate with each other.”
Jacob Berman ’25, another protestor at the occupation, underscored the significance of the protest in the context of the Board of Trustees meetings.
“This is coinciding with the Board of Trustee[s’] meetings happening [on] Thursday and Friday, and we are here to send a message to Martha and the Board of Trustees that your community members, your students and [your] staff are not okay with your University funding this genocide,” Berman said.
CML held an emergency rally in front of Day Hall at 2 p.m. Thursday and plans to continue pushing for divestment at a Ho Plaza rally Friday at 12:30 p.m.
While Day Hall typically closes at 5:15 p.m., demonstrators were told at approximately 4 p.m. that a request from the trustees — some of whom visited the protestors throughout the occupation — to allow protestors to stay in the building without repercussions until 6 p.m. would be honored.
According to a statement released by Joel Malina, vice president for University relations, Cornell Trustees Stephen Robinson and Martin Scheinman visited the demonstrators at Day Hall to listen to the protestors’ concerns. The Trustees informed the group that while they would inform the other Trustees about the group’s concerns, their demands could not be met.
“At 6 o’clock [p.m.], [Cornell University Police Department] will come to ask you to leave,” said Christine Nye, associate director for group behavior and development in the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards, to the demonstrators. “At that time, if you fail to comply, you may be referred and/or arrested.”
In a follow-up interview with The Sun at 5:10 p.m., Nye confirmed that this request would be honored.
Police prevented individuals from entering the building as the demonstration approached the 6 p.m. deadline. Protestors sat in a wide circle surrounding the door and sang songs of solidarity.
Approximately 75 people protested outside Day Hall shouting phrases including “Free, free Palestine.” Protestors also cheered on the passing of a campus-wide referendum on ceasefire and divestment which CML advocated for, meaning the student body will vote on whether the University should publicly call for a ceasefire in Gaza and divest from weapons manufacturers, and Pollack must respond to the result.
Despite warnings from campus staff and the Cornell University Police Department emphasizing the building’s closure, demonstrators continued occupying Day Hall.
Starting at just past 6 p.m., police removed demonstrators from the lobby by a few people at a time. Approximately an hour later, all demonstrators were removed from the lobby.
22 students were referred to OSCCS for breaching the Student Code of Conduct and two employees were referred to Human Resources for violating University policy, Malina wrote.
Police collected students’ identification. The police charged demonstrators with trespassing, with a court order to appear before Ithaca City Court set for over spring break.
Julia Nagel ’24 contributed reporting.
Clarification, March 23, 11:29 p.m.: This article has been updated with more information about how the CML-advocated for referendum works.
Update, 3/22, 9:50 a.m.: This article has been updated to include details from a press release written by Joel Malina, vice president for University relations.
Update, 3/21, 8:50 p.m.: This article has been updated to include details about the conclusion of the occupation.
Update, 3/21, 5:47 p.m.: This article has been updated to include more details about the occupation and the honoring of the trustee’s request to let demonstrators stay without repercussions past the typical closing time of Day Hall.