We, the undersigned graduate and undergraduate student groups, faculty and other members of the Cornell community, express our deep concern over the use of language from an ongoing Cornell disciplinary process by defendants in the federal case Momodou Taal et al. v. Donald J. Trump.
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We are outraged to read that Unit Chief Roy Stanley of the Counterterrorism Intelligence Unit at Immigration and Customs Enforcement characterized our friend, classmate, colleague and teacher, Momodou Taal, as "disruptive," "creating a hostile environment" and an "alien." We strongly reject ICE’s unsubstantiated claim that Momodou has exhibited a "long-term pattern of disregarding the rights of other students and the general public."
ICE further cites statements made by a Cornell senior associate dean to support the claim that "bystanders [at the Statler Hotel career fair protest] reported medical complaints and possible hearing loss." These statements, drawn from internal university procedures, were never subject to legal scrutiny or standards of due process. Cornell University’s own Student Code of Conduct policy states that “these [Code of Conduct violation] Procedures establish a process for University administrative review, and do not seek to replicate substantive or procedural legal rules.”
Members of the Cornell community have repeatedly expressed deep concern about the University’s handling of Momodou Taal’s case — condemning both the University’s treatment of him and the misleading narrative used to describe the students who protested at the Statler and their actions. These concerns have been compounded by widespread criticism of the lack of due process in the disciplinary proceedings arising from the divestment encampment and related protests.
Black students have publicly criticized the racialized rhetoric used by the administration, stating, “There is no evidence that Taal has engaged in any violent activity.” Community voices continuously raised the alarm about the administration’s recent heavy-handed tactics to suppress dissent and criticized its Interim Expressive Activity Policy, which was used for the aforementioned discipline procedures and was publicly disapproved of by the Graduate and Professional Student Assembly and publicly critiqued by the Student Assembly.
In Resolution 6, the GSPA formally requested a halt to disciplinary actions relating to the same Statler protest, stating that the University’s actions “reflect[ed] no engagement in due process or just cause by the University Administration before application of disciplinary measures”.
ICE is constructing an unjust, untrue and legally unsound narrative of Momodou and his actions to justify the stripping of his legal status in the United States. Based on our experience in sharing the Cornell community with Momodou Taal, we decisively stand against this narrative. We have seen no evidence of Momodou’s alleged violent, harassing or antisemitic behavior. Most recently, a coalition of Jewish Cornellians has authored a letter rejecting the claim that Momodou has created a “hostile environment” for Jewish students on campus.
Momodou has not been charged with any crime. His disciplinary proceedings at Cornell did not result in any visa-related consequences. We consider the Trump administration's decision to revoke his visa completely arbitrary and punitive.
We affirm Momodou Taal’s enduring contributions to the Cornell community and his commitment to human rights advocacy. We will not stand by as the federal government attempts to deport one of our own, a member deeply valued on our campus.
We call upon the Cornell administration to uphold the intent of Student Assembly Resolution 37 calling to protect the immigrant community by enacting all of its recommendations, and upon all allies to attend Tuesday, March 25 hearing in the James M. Hanley Federal Building & U.S. Courthouse in Syracuse and to oppose any attempt to remove Momodou Taal from our community.
The Progressives at Cornell are a registered undergraduate student organization at Cornell. They submitted this statement on behalf of the undersigned organizations. They can be reached at cornellprogressives@gmail.com.
Signed,
Graduate Labor Organization
The Progressives at Cornell
Grads for Palestine
Young Democratic Socialists of America at Cornell
Jewish Voice for Peace at Cornell
SIPS Community Advocacy
Asian Pacific Americans for Action (APAA)
Kashmiri Cultural Alliance
Medieval Studies Student Colloquium (MSSC)
Cornell’s Advancing Science and Policy Club
Chemists for Outreach and Graduate Inclusion
Graduate Worker Action Caucus (GWAC)
Cornell Collective for Justice in Palestine (CCJP)
Alumni for a Fair and Just Cornell
Cornell Association of PhD Planners
Cornell National Lawyers Guild
Cornell Alumni for Palestine
CGSU-UE Bargaining Committee
Fanclub Collective
Moots Ithaca
Native American and Indigenous Students at Cornell
Indigenous Graduate Student Association Executive Board
Medieval Studies Graduate Association (MSGA)
Black Graduate and Professional Student Association (BGPSA)
Graduate Students in Public Health (GraPH)
Black Students United
The Cornell University Student Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union
English Graduate Student Organization
Latine Graduate Student Coalition at Cornell University Executive Board
Ithaca Committee for Justice in Palestine
Lavender at Cornell
Cornell on Fire
Cornell Archaeological Science Group
Coalition of Students Resisting the CCP - Cornell Coalition
Muslim Educational and Cultural Association at Cornell
Zero Waste Ithaca
Cornell Jewish Alliance for Justice
Queer Anarchy Collective (QUAC)
