UMass Amherst released a report Wednesday from a task force formed over the summer to make recommendations on policies and guidelines for students who want to protest on campus.
UMass Chancellor Javier Reyes created the 17-member Demonstration Policy Task Force in June in response to widespread criticism of his decision to order police to clear a protest encampment on May 7. Police arrested more than 130 students, faculty and community members, with videos of the chaotic scene making the rounds on social media.
The encampment — like many on campuses across the country — included tents as well as wooden barriers. Protesters set up the demonstration in solidarity with Palestine and to urge the school to cut financial ties with military contractors. Reyes said the encampment presented a safety concern.
The report, released a day after UMass began its fall semester, stressed the importance of “clear policies” and states “by law, UMass Amherst must remain viewpoint neutral. University policies are not meant to be waived when the desired social change is, by any individual or majority view, perceived to be just.”
A few of the recommendations include “removing ambiguities” from what's known as the school's "land use policy," creating a frequently asked questions page focused on free speech, and developing de-escalation tactics for possible conflicts.
UMass Students for Justice in Palestine member Malia Cole said she's weary of the University's ability to do that.
"We are never to the point where there are violent or non-peaceful altercations between individuals at our protests until the police show up," Cole said. "The idea that there needs to be some sort of de-escalation tactic in place is a bit of a farce because we aren't doing anything that requires de-escalation in reality."
Cole said some members of the task force "are very incredible, and I know them personally." They included an SJP member who was among the students arrested, Cole said.
Over the next several weeks, these recommendations will move through the governing bodies of the university for deliberation, Reyes said in a press release.
"As I read through the [task force's] report, I am reminded that our policies are meant to protect the space of open discourse, not to allow endorsement of a single viewpoint through their selective application," Reyes said. "For these reasons, going forward, I will refrain from issuing statements on national, international, or geopolitical events, unless they have a direct bearing on the functions of our campus and its mission."
UMass did not respond to requests for an interview.
