More than 600 students and teaching assistants at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst exploded onto the campus streets yesterday, following through on a promised two-day boycott of classes.
Following the lead of the Student Government Association and the Graduate Student Government, students marched to the Whitman Administration Building, where they spoke to Vice Chancellor for Administration and Finance Joyce Hatch, said UMass spokesman Ed Blaguszewski, who declined comment and referred The Daily Free Press to a university press release.
“We are a campus that supports freedom of speech and the right of the campus community to express their opinions,” said interim Chancellor Thomas Cole Jr. in the release. “Students who decide to participate are fully responsible for their behavior and also remain responsible for any material they miss while intentionally not attending class.”
The undergraduate students have banded together with graduate students and TAs to protest unwanted university police presence in residence halls, call for increase diversity on campus, reduce student fees and raise salaries for TAs.
“Rumor has it that soon, cops are going to be in all dorms and will be able to go into rooms if they think suspicious activities are going on,” said UMass freshman Stephanie Miller. “I don’t want cops invading my privacy, so I’m going to protest.”
But officers do not enter residence halls unless they have probable cause or they are responding to a call from a resident assistant or student, said UMass Police Department Deputy Chief Patrick Archbald in a Nov. 14 article in The Daily Collegian, the student newspaper at UMass-Amherst.
Some students said they are encouraged by the support from professors and TAs.
“Three of my teachers who are graduate students canceled my classes o they could strike,” said freshman Shayla Russell. “One of my teachers said we had an excused absence if we chose to skip.”
Other students upset with the protesting group said the strike is unnecessary and causes an unwanted inconvenience.
“This really messes with the syllabi of many teachers and is equally frustrating to students who are looking for structure as they go into Thanksgiving and prepare for December finals,” said sophomore Will McGuinness.
There is virtually no possibility of a similar strike hitting the Charles River Campus, said Boston University Student Union President Adil Yunis.
“There are currently no issues that we have with the administration,” Yunis said. “The first approach we use is always dialogue. If that doesn’t work, there are always other measures to express our views.”