Dear Cornellian,

This past weekend, at a time when the student body would normally come together in celebration at the end of another successful year of classes, an incident took place which has affected the entire student body. On Sunday morning, it was reported that a group of students walking in front of 730 University Ave, home of Sigma Pi fraternity, were threatened with racial slurs and objects that were thrown from the roof of the building. This type of behavior is completely unacceptable and has no place on Cornell’s campus, which was founded on the value of providing a safe environment to all students. This incident has hurt the friends, university, and community for which we care so deeply.

As a unified student body, we need to do our part to prevent such actions so that they do not occur again. Whether it is due to gender, ethnicity, race, sexual orientation, socio-economic status or some other factor, each of us could fall victim to discrimination and feel its destructive effects. We all share in this community together and each of our individual experiences depends on the well-being of the student body as a whole. If we have learned yet one truth at Cornell, it is this: a threat to the civil liberties of any one of us is a threat to the civil liberties of us all.

This year the University celebrated the 43rd anniversary of the Willard Straight Hall takeover, a monumental event in the history of equality at Cornell. We pledge to continue the work of those before us; just as Cornellians called for change that day, we too will not be complacent in the face of discrimination. But the change that is necessary must come from everyone. We must all recognize that despite our different backgrounds, hometowns, majors, appearances, or stories, we are bound by the notion that we are each an integral part of the Cornell community. Only then will we create an environment that benefits us all and the students who will follow in our paths.

There will be a community forum held in G-10 Biotech, Wednesday May 9th, from 7-9 p.m.  We look forward to discussing this issue and emerging from this incident strengthened in our recognition of the steps we must take to advance a culture of inclusion and appreciation for diversity – and to taking those steps together as a united student body.

Sincerely,

The Student Assembly