Man who threatened to bomb Harvard’s Black commencement ceremony pleads guilty
Nicholas Zuckerman faces charges for terroristic threats made to a ceremony at the university aimed at celebrating the accomplishments of African American students
A white man who threatened to bomb Harvard University and shoot attendees of a 2017 commencement for Black graduates, pleaded guilty to criminal charges on Thursday, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office of Massachusetts.
Nicholas Zuckerman, of Arizona, faces two counts of “transmitting in interstate and foreign commerce a threat to injure the person of another—and of singling out the people he threatened because of their ‘race and color’, The Harvard Crimson reports
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On May 13, 2017, Zuckerman reportedly commented on a post on Harvard’s Instagram account calling for “violence and death” at the University’s first Black commencement. The ceremony, held in late May 2017, was the first for the institution and was established to celebrate Black achievement across Harvard’s schools.
“If the blacks only ceremony happens, then I encourage violence and death at it,” Zuckerman wrote in the post. “I’m thinking two automatics with extendo clips.”
In another threatening post, Zuckerman also wrote: “#bombharvard and end their pro-black agenda.”
While the Black commencement ceremony was approved by the university, it was actually a student-run event, and never meant to replace the main commencement ceremony at which graduates of all races received their diplomas.
Zuckerman reportedly commented “#bombharvard” on several users’ posts at least 11 times over a four-minute period, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.
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Under a plea agreement, Zuckerman will reportedly serve 12-18 months in prison and pay a fine ranging from $5,500 to $55,000.
