Ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo called for cutting off government funding to public colleges that condone antisemitism and urged alumni to stop donating to their alma maters until the schools clamp down on hate.
“These threats are criminal and cannot be tolerated,” said Cuomo, after seeing an account of antisemitic messages and threats against Jewish students at Cornell University in upstate Ithaca.
“The time for empty statements of condemnation is past. It’s time for real action: Alumni nationwide should halt donations to schools who have not adequately addressed this proliferation of hate and state schools should see their funding stopped until universities address this vile activity,” Cuomo said Monday in an official statement and on X.
Gov. Kathy Hochul updated her schedule Monday morning to hold a roundtable discussion with Cornell students in response to antisemitic threats.
Cornell went on high alert Sunday night after a series of “horrendous, antisemitic” messages that threatened the school’s Jewish community were posted on a public forum, school officials said.
The school notified law enforcement agencies and campus police took precautions after a series of disturbing online posts made threats directed at Jewish students and the Center for Jewish Living, said university’s president Martha Pollack.
The FBI also had been contacted about a potential hate crime at the upstate New York Ivy League school amid the Israel-Hamas war, Pollack said.
Last week, a Cornell professor who called the Hamas terror attack on Israel “exhilarating” and “energizing” took a leave of absence.
Russell Rickford, an associate professor of history, went viral for the incendiary remarks to students during a pro-Palestinian protest soon after the Oct. 7 surprise attack on Israel killed 1,400 people, mostly civilians.
Cornell is a private university, but it receives millions of dollars in state grants, particularly through its agricultural research programs.
New York policy forbids state agencies from contracting with firms that support the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against Israel.
Facing the threat of impeachment, Cuomo resigned as governor in August 2021 amid a rash of sexual misconduct accusations. He denied the allegations.
He has amped up public statements and appearances in recent months in a bid to climb back to relevancy, if not a comeback attempt for public office.