Potential Protests in the City Related to Memphis Killing

Dear Cooper Union Community:

Last week we resumed our work and studies while commemorating the life, work, and words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. At the same time, our nation has once again been gripped by events that expose a deep-rooted legacy of systemic racism and violence.

Earlier this month, a 29-year-old father named Tyre Nichols was beaten by police during a traffic stop in Memphis and died in the hospital three days later. Yesterday the five police officers involved were charged with second-degree murder. Video footage of the incident, which is being described as appalling, graphic, and extremely difficult to watch, is set to be released today, with protests anticipated in Memphis and other cities, including here in New York, as angst, outrage, and sorrow over this injustice continue to surface.

I am heartbroken for the family of Tyre Nichols. This incident, as well as the recent killing of Tortuguita, a climate justice activist in Atlanta, and last week’s mass shootings in California, which involved the targeting of a Lunar New Year celebration, are beyond horrific, defying any sense of how the world should be. These are deeply challenging times, compounded by the anguish and fear of racially motivated violence and raging war and social upheaval in the wider world.

As details about the killing of Tyre Nichols come to light today, I ask that you care for one another, keep each other safe, and know that you are not alone in your feelings of anger and grief. Remember that there are resources of support here for students and faculty and staff. Please access them and use them.

  • Anyone who feels unsafe or who observes violent or concerning activity can call security at (212) 353-4270 and/or NYC Emergency at 911 or 888-NYC-SAFE.
     
  • You may find the following links helpful for information about your rights and safety during protests and demonstrations:
  • For student counseling and mental health resources, click here. You can also contact our Student Care team at studentcare@cooper.edu or by calling 212.353.4130. Students also have 24/7 access to counseling through Cooper Care.
     
  • For employee counseling (faculty and staff), you can access the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) at 800-252-4555.
     
  • In the event of any incident of harassment, bigotry, or discrimination within the Cooper community or on Cooper’s campus, students should report what has transpired to Chris Chamberlin, Dean of Students, or to their academic deans; faculty to their deans or human resources (HR); and staff to their supervisors or HR.

Our sense of humanity is being tested time and again. Let us draw strength from knowing that The Cooper Union is a community where self-reflection, activism, and the everyday work to advance justice can find peaceful channels for action and for making our voices heard. Please look out for one another as we face these difficult and challenging moments together.

Laura

  • Founded by inventor, industrialist and philanthropist Peter Cooper in 1859, The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art offers education in art, architecture and engineering, as well as courses in the humanities and social sciences.

  • “My feelings, my desires, my hopes, embrace humanity throughout the world,” Peter Cooper proclaimed in a speech in 1853. He looked forward to a time when, “knowledge shall cover the earth as waters cover the great deep.”

  • From its beginnings, Cooper Union was a unique institution, dedicated to founder Peter Cooper's proposition that education is the key not only to personal prosperity but to civic virtue and harmony.

  • Peter Cooper wanted his graduates to acquire the technical mastery and entrepreneurial skills, enrich their intellects and spark their creativity, and develop a sense of social justice that would translate into action.