Hundreds of students, faculty members, and other supporters gathered Monday in front of the school’s student center under the banner of “Justice for Survivors.” Attendees wore purple ribbons and held signs that asked questions such as “Cornell, can you hear us now?” and “When will we start protecting survivors?”
“We found it incredible,” Soham Bera, the vice-chair of SDC, tells TIME. “This was a moment where you had hundreds, if not thousands, of students coming together—despite the fact this administration has been known for cracking down on protesting and still deciding this is our moment.”
The groups also presented Cornell’s leadership with demands for disciplinary action and changes to how the university handles sexual assault complaints.
Athena Holloway, the former president of Cornell’s Black Students United and president of Cornell NAACP, was one of the speakers at the student-led event. She noted the long history of students using their voices to demand change on campus, including the Afro-American Society Willard Straight Hall Takeover of 1969.
It comes as a response to the civil lawsuit filed Sept. 14 by a former Cornell student, who is identified in the complaint as Jane Doe. Doe not only alleges in the lawsuit that she was sexually assaulted by seven members of the school’s Chi Phi fraternity but also claims that Cornell was negligent in its response and violated New York law.
“We need to speak up. This miscarriage of justice cannot continue to go on,” Bera says.
Cornell has confirmed that its disciplinary process resulted in expulsions and suspensions, but it has not disclosed individual outcomes. It also clarified last week that “none of the individuals charged were offered the opportunity to write essays as a sole consequence of their involvement.”
Cornell subsequently gave a response to Inside Higher Ed saying that it regularly works with students seeking leave and has in the past refunded payments, but it did not respond directly to the accusation related to Doe.
“There are people out there trying to track her down,” he told CNN’s State of the Union. “They said, ‘We’re gonna shut you up.’”
Dissatisfaction was also expressed early Monday when the school's main administration building was splashed with graffiti and had its doors damaged.
As the students continue to assert their frustration with the university, so too does the faculty.
“The faculty Senate has no confidence in the ability of the central administration to effectively address the ongoing crisis of sexual assault at Cornell University,” the resolution states, according to The New York Times.
TIME has reached out to Ortiz for further comment from the Senate.
Alumni also launched an online petition that has collected over 61,000 signatures pledging to withhold financial and other means of support until the university demonstrates accountability, transparency, remedy, and prevention. TIME cannot independently confirm that all of the signees were formerly enrolled at Cornell.
What Cornell students and faculty want to see changed
Bera says the groups also want to restore a university judicial system independent of the administration.
She points to 2020, when the school approved a new Student Code of Conduct, placing disciplinary authority in the administration's hands. SDC and its collaborators believe that this independent judicial system needs to be re-implemented “as soon as possible,” Bera says.
What happens next for Cornell?
The pressure on Cornell is now moving on several fronts: an independent review, a state investigation, a faculty vote and further protests.
“What happened to Jane Doe in 2024 is deeply disturbing and will weigh heavily on our community for years to come,” he said.
“The review will examine Cornell’s policies, practices and resources across the full range of prevention and response, including how reports are received and investigated; how students are supported; how hearings, disciplinary decisions and appeals are handled … and policies and oversight involving fraternities, sororities, and other student organizations,” according to the accompanying statement.
TIME has reached out to Cornell for comment.
The criminal investigation was reopened Sept. 28 by Tompkins District Attorney Matthew Van Houten.
“Think about that—in what world would the police learn from a victim that she'd been literally gang raped while intoxicated by five men in a fraternity house and not elevate those allegations to the District Attorney?” Hochul said in a press conference on Oct. 2. “In what world does the District Attorney not even interview her or anyone else involved—or even request the full transcript?”
Next is a sit-in protest “in solidarity with Jane Doe and all survivors of sexual assault and sexual violence,” she says. That takes place Wednesday.
“Cornell Administration supports known rapists,” the organizers’ post said. “We demand answers.”
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