Cornell president acknowledges Hamas as a terrorist group after receiving backlash
‘The loss of human life is always tragic, whether caused by human actions such as terrorism, war or mass shootings, or by natural disasters such as earthquakes, fires or floods,’ President Martha Pollack wrote.
‘I offer my heartfelt apologies for the omission from my previous message,’ she later said.
In a statement published Tuesday, Oct. 10, Cornell University President Martha Pollack did not condemn Hamas, and called its terrorist attacks in Israel “a response to world events.”
“The loss of human life is always tragic, whether caused by human actions such as terrorism, war or mass shootings, or by natural disasters such as earthquakes, fires or floods,” Pollack wrote. “Regrettably, there are so often horrific events around the world, and because it is impossible to respond to each to them, there is no way to acknowledge the pain that different members of our community feel when such events occur.”
Pollack then compared the Hamas attacks to the recent earthquake in Afghanistan and war in Nagorno-Karabakh.
“As a community of scholars, we can also learn about the history and politics of the Middle East,” she wrote.
Pollack released another statement the same day acknowledging that Hamas committed acts of terrorism and gave a “heartfelt apology” for failing to say so in her original message.
“Earlier today, I wrote to you with the goal of providing information about the efforts that we have made over the last few days to reach out to and support our faculty, students and staff who have been impacted by the devastation in Israel, and to acknowledge the impact that this and other recent tragedies have had on members of our campus community,” she said.
“In the hours since, I have heard from a number of you who expressed dismay that I failed to say that the atrocities committed by Hamas this past weekend were acts of terrorism, which I condemn in the strongest possible terms,” she added.
“I offer my heartfelt apologies for the omission from my previous message,” she stated.
In comparison, in May 2020, Pollack said she was “heartbroken, angry and frankly sickened” by the deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor.
“Decent people and institutions cannot stand silent,” she wrote at the time.
“We will do all we can as a university to address this scourge of racism,” she added.
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Meanwhile, a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) instructor at Cornell has come under fire for supporting Hamas, calling the terrorist group’s murders as part of a “resistance,” the New York Post reported.
“When you hear about Israel this morning and the resistance being launched by Palestinians, remember against all odds Palestinians are fighting for life, dignity, and freedom — alongside others doing the same — against settle colonization, imperialism, capitalism, white supremacy, which the United States is the model,” Borders wrote on his Instagram story, according to the New York Post.
At least 1,200 Israelis and 25 Americans have died since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, according to Fox News.
