Along the entrance of Day Hall on Monday morning, the messages "Israel bombs, Cornell pays" and "Blood is on your hands" were scrawled in red spray paint, and the door glass had been smashed.
"We are appalled by the graffiti spraypainted, and glass shattered overnight along the front entrance of Day Hall," Cornell's Vice President for University Relations Joel Malina said in a statement.
"Acts of violence, extended occupation of buildings, or property damage (including graffiti) will not be tolerated and will prompt an immediate response from public safety," he added. "Cornell Police are conducting a thorough investigation, and those responsible will be subject to suspension and criminal charges."
So-called activists, who asked the Cornell Daily Sun student newspaper to remain anonymous, issued a statement claiming responsibility for the vandalism overnight.
"We had to accept that the only way to make ourselves heard is by targeting the only thing the university administration truly cares about: property," the statement to the Sun said. "With the start of this new academic year, the Cornell administration is trying desperately to upkeep a facade of normalcy knowing that, since last semester, they have been working tirelessly to uphold Cornell's function as a fascist, classist, imperial machine."
The activists' statement claimed that former Cornell University President Martha Pollack "tried to sneak away into retirement" after the spring semester after opting against calling for a cease-fire in Gaza and divestment from Israel. They vowed to "continue to take action and escalate for divestment, for a free Palestine, for land back, and for all liberation struggles resisting imperialism."
As for "debates and peaceful protests," the activists' statement said, "these on their own will never be enough to achieve the change we demand."
On Monday afternoon, about 150 anti-Israel demonstrators organized by the "Coalition for Mutual Liberation," marched from Ho Plaza up to Klarman Hall, filling the building and chanting phrases including, "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free," a slogan calling for the elimination of the state of Israel. Using zip-ties, demonstrators hung a banner reading, "Peoples school coming soon."
Police arrived about 20 minutes after the protesters filled Klarman Hall and asked for student IDs so that the demonstrators could be referred for disciplinary action, the Sun reported.
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