As the fall semester began Monday at many colleges across the country, so did on-campus anti-Israel vandalism.
The front entrance of Day Hall, the main administrative building at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, was spray-painted in red with "Israel bombs, Cornell pays" and "Blood on your hands," and the front door glass was smashed, The Cornell Daily Sun student newspaper reported.
The newspaper reported it received a statement from pro-Palestinian protesters who wrote, "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 protesters, who asked to remain anonymous, also wrote, "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."
A statement by the Ivy League university's president, Michael Kotlikoff, and interim provost, John Siliciano, to the Cornell community on Monday morning did not directly respond to the graffiti but explained the necessity to balance rights to free speech and ensure "a learning environment free of unlawful harassment and discrimination," the Daily Sun reported.
Joel Malina, vice president for university relations, said those who vandalized Day Hall are being investigated by university police and will be subject to suspension and criminal charges.
"We are appalled by the graffiti spraypainted, and glass shattered overnight along the front entrance of Day Hall," Malina wrote, according to the Daily Sun. "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."
The activists vowed to "continue to take action and escalate for divestment, for a free Palestine, for land back, and for all liberation struggles resisting imperialism," the Daily Sun reported. The activists also expressed their disillusionment with "debates and peaceful protests," saying that "these on their own will never be enough to achieve the change we demand."
Cornell is among 10 elite U.S. universities facing scrutiny from House Republicans regarding on-campus antisemitism.
Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., chair of the Committee on Education and the Workforce, and Rep. Jason Smith, R-Mo., chair of the Ways and Means Committee, wrote letters last week to the heads of the 10 universities, including Cornell, requesting they share the policies, procedures, and concrete measures their institutions will be implementing to prevent a resurgence of on-campus antisemitism, and the harassment and intimidation of Jewish students returning to campus this fall.
In April, Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., named Foxx and Smith as two leaders of a House-wide committee investigating the rise in antisemitic activity on U.S. university campuses.