Cornell University’s president has blasted a group of radical students for hurling abuse and holding him hostage in his own car following an Israel-Palestine debate series at the Ivy League school.
The group of rabble-rousers filmed themselves swarming Michael Kotlikoff and trailing him to his vehicle as he was trying to leave the event at the Ithaca, New York, campus last Thursday.
Kotlikoff accused the group — who he said have become notorious for spewing verbal and online abuse toward Cornell staffers in the past – of surrounding his car, banging on the windows and blocking him from leaving.
The school prez spoke out after the students posted footage on social media of Kotlikoff apparently backing into the group amid the parking lot chaos.
At least one brazen student who stood defiantly behind Kotlikoff’s car accused him of running over his foot.
Kotlikoff, however, insisted the group was hell-bent on “harassment and intimidation.”
“These individuals followed me from the event space and across campus, while loudly shouting questions and recording on their phones. After answering a few questions, I let them know that I was not planning to engage further, and asked them to stop recording,” he said in a statement.
“They continued to follow me to my car and then surrounded the car, banging on the windows, blocking the car, and shouting.
“I waited until I saw space behind the car and then, using my car’s rear pedestrian alert and automatic braking system, was able to slowly maneuver my car from the parking space and exit the parking lot,” Kotlikoff added.
Kotlikoff, who has been president of Cornell since March 2025, insisted that the earlier debate series event was “vigorous and civil.”
Source: Drudge Report
