Cornell University president accused of backing into student in parking lot confrontation

Cornell University's president claimed he was the victim of "harassment and intimidation" following a parking lot confrontation with a group of people who said he tried to back his car into them.The incident unfolded on Thursday, April 30, after Cornell President Michael Kotlikoff introduced an Israel-Palestinian debate series that was hosted by the Cornell Political Union and co-sponsored by the Cornell Progressives, Cornellians for Israel, and Students for Justice in Palestine.Kotlikoff said the behavior he experienced while allegedly being followed to his car in an on-campus lot by six or seven people, some of them students, "is harassment and intimidation, with the direct motive of silencing speech.""It has no place in an academic community, no place in a democracy, and can have no place at Cornell," Kolikoff said in his statement released to the Ithaca, New York, university's community on Friday.Following the debate, videos posted online showed several people following Kolikoff to his car while questioning him about freedom of speech. The videos showed Kolikoff's black Cadillac backing up out of a parking space as students appeared to be standing behind his vehicle.Enhanced surveillance video released by Cornell University, May 3, 2026, shows a group of people standing behind university