“Hands off Momodou!” students chanted during a Wednesday rally as they protested the suspension of Momodou Taal, an international graduate student and outspoken pro-Palestinian activist.
Following Taal’s suspension Monday, a group of approximately 130 students, faculty and community members gathered in front of Day Hall to call on the administration to reverse its decision to suspend Taal.
The Coalition for Mutual Liberation organized the rally, which began at 12:30 p.m. Several speakers, their faces covered with masks and keffiyehs, delivered speeches in support of Taal and led chants criticizing the administration’s decision to suspend him.
Taal was suspended over his involvement in a disruptive protest last Wednesday, when he and other students shut down a career fair attended by defense contractors Boeing and L3Harris.
“I want you to think [about] a University where you can just deport somebody you don’t agree with, where you can deport somebody who says something that you don’t like. That is fascism 101,” a masked speaker said of Taal’s suspension.
During the rally, five University officers monitored the scene, while two other officers stood guard inside Day Hall. An officer took pictures of speakers when they lifted or lowered their face coverings.
A group of about ten student counterprotesters gathered on the sidewalk watching the rally at a remove. Some yelled at the crowd to “take your masks off.”
Prof. Russell Rickford, history, attended the rally and delivered a speech in support of Taal. “Dear brother Momodou, we love you,” he said.
When Rickford began his speech, a man started walking towards the crowd but was stopped by Cornell University Police Department officers. He was yelling, “Why don’t you go to Gaza and see what they do to you? You will be the first one they kill. You support criminals.”
When he was pulled aside he demanded that the officer give him an explanation as to why he was being removed “What about free speech? I have free speech!” The man left the area shortly after.
Another counterprotester was also told to move back when he tried to get closer to the crowd, yelling, “Go back to Gaza.” He declined to speak to The Sun.
“The police told me something I think we should all agree with: They are just here to make sure nothing gets violent. Protect their right to protest, protect our right to be here in opposition,” said Ezra Galperin ’27, at-large Student Assembly representative, who was counterprotesting.
As some counterprotesters yelled, “What happened on October 7th?” into the crowd, the protesters chanted, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” in response.
“For those complicit in genocide, your day of reckoning is coming. It is not a matter of if, but when, so don’t force our hand,” said one of the masked speakers in a speech toward the end of the rally.
At 1:40 p.m., the rally ended and the organizers invited attendees to stay in front of Day Hall to picket until they received a concrete response from the administration about Taal’s suspension. Around 35 students remained around the entrance of Day Hall to picket, vowing they would stay until they received a response from administration. By 4 p.m., they left.
The rally is one of the multiple displays of support for Taal by members of the Cornell community. The Africana Graduate Students Association sent a press release in support of Taal to The Sun.
“The Africana Studies department was founded on student activism, solidarity and a commitment to a better future for African-descended people throughout the diaspora,” the statement read. “In calling on you to support Momodou, we honor the tradition that student protesters began and uphold our commitment to the tenets of Africana Studies.”
An open petition organized by Cornell Collective for Justice in Palestine, which the AGSA press release says has amassed 4,500 signatures, was also attached. The Sun could not independently verify the number of signatories.
“We are alarmed that temporary suspensions, the Student Code of Conduct and the Interim Expressive Activity Policy are being weaponized against the most vulnerable student activists and leaders, in a cruel attempt to silence student protest,” an excerpt of the petition reads.
Cornell Graduate Student United, the graduate student union, released a statement on Monday calling on the University to reverse its decision. GCSU also has scheduled a rally to protest Taal’s suspension in front of Bailey Hall on Oct. 3.
Taal, who did not attend the rally since he has been barred from campus, shared a post on X at 5:11 p.m., clarifying that he has yet to receive confirmation of his withdrawal from the University and that he was informed by administration that his F-1 visa would remain open until the appeal process was finalized.
“I am still on a temporary suspension So Please keep up the pressure,” wrote Taal on X.
When asked about how Taal’s suspension might jeopardize his legal status, Joel Malina, vice president for University relations, said in a statement that the University had no enforcement powers.
“Any international student administratively withdrawn by Cornell pursuant to the Student Code of Conduct is urged to immediately review immigration guidelines and consult with experts,” Malina wrote. “Universities can disallow enrollment and bar a student from campus, but do not have deportation powers.”