State Sen. Rachel May and Assemblyman Bill Magnarelli visited the #NotAgainSU sit-in Saturday morning.

Protesters announced at about 1 a.m. Saturday that the state representatives would be arriving to the Barnes Center at The Arch at 10 a.m. An organizer woke up the sleeping protesters at 9 a.m., and everyone began cleaning up the occupied space in preparation of their arrival. 

Over 75 students had slept in the center overnight. They didn’t care that they would be receiving May and Magnarelli in their pajamas — it shows they’re human, one said.

May had read the demands and thought they were “extremely thoughtful.” She did not commit to advocating for their implementation, but said she agreed with most on the list. She wants to have discussions with students concerning several of the demands, particularly the one about the housing selection process.

The students’ revised list didn’t include the initial demand to meet with SU’s Board of Trustees. May encouraged #NotAgainSU to continue with this request, as Chancellor Kent Syverud responds to the trustees. 

Assemblyman Bill Magnarelli declined to endorse #NotAgainSU’s demands. Corey Henry | Photo Editor

May said she entered politics as an activist, and now has a seat on the political table. One way to remain at the table is to have conversations and try to find common ground between people who disagree.

The senator said she was impressed by the protesters, and thinks the world is as well. 

“My heart is with you all,” May said in closing.

The sit-in reached its third day as the state representatives arrived. Protesters gathered Wednesday morning in the Barnes Center after racial slurs against black and Asian people were found written in Day Hall last week. 

As the demonstration continued, at least one additional bias incident occurred in Day Hall and was reported to the Department of Public Safety. Racist language against Asian people in the Physics Building was also reported to DPS on Wednesday night. A swastika was drawn on a snowbank across from the 505 on Walnut. 

Magnarelli, a Syracuse University alumnus, arrived shortly before May. He said he was there to listen to the students.

“We are all very concerned about what’s happening here on The Hill,” he said. “I will help any way I can to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”

Magnarelli said he hasn’t spoken yet with Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who deployed the state’s hate crimes task force to investigate the graffiti found in Day Hall. Though he couldn’t provide updates in the investigation, Magnarelli said it “breaks his heart” to be at SU under these circumstances. 

After Magnarelli’s statement, the floor was opened up for student questions. One protester wanted to know if he could review #NotAgainSU’s 18 demands and use his political position to pressure the university. He said he’ll definitely review the demands, but won’t make any promises, he said. When another student asked how Magnarelli can use his position to advocate for the protesters, he replied, “I’m here.”

A protester asked if Magnarelli could commit to helping the university further community outreach in low-income neighborhoods, which is a new demand on the protesters’ revised list. Magnarelli replied that he’s always looking to reinvest in parts of Syracuse that need help.

Published on November 16, 2019 at 1:25 pm

Contact Emma: esfolts@syr.edu