On October 2, 2024, Harvard University banned 12 students from Widener Library for two weeks after they staged a silent “study-in” protest.
The protest took place on September 21 and was organized by Harvard Out of Occupied Palestine, a student group, as an emergency action in protest of recent Israeli strikes on the group Hezbollah, in Lebanon. Prior to the protest, members of the group stood outside of the library distributing keffiyehs, Palestinian scarves, and signs reading “Imagine it happened here” and “Israel bombs, Harvard pays.” Library staff passed out pieces of paper stating that student protests are not permitted in libraries to those who entered the building.
Inside the library, around 30 student protesters attached the signs to the backs of their computers, donned keffiyehs, and sat in the reading room silently working for about one hour. Library staff asked participants for their student IDs and took down their ID numbers.
On October 2, twelve students involved in the protest received an email from the Widener Library administration stating that they would be banned from using the library for two weeks, until October 16. The emailed informed them that, during their suspension, they would “continue to have borrowing privileges and can request pick-up at other library locations,” and that their “online access to library resources and services will not be affected.”
Scholars at Risk is concerned about a university taking disciplinary action against students in retaliation for exercising their rights to free expression in a manner that is not disruptive. While university authorities should endeavor to prevent disruptions that inappropriately inhibit the functioning of or access to higher education, they must do so consistent with their responsibility to ensure academic freedom and free expression on campus. Even relatively minor disciplinary penalties for non-disruptive actions undermine academic freedom and democratic society generally.
Sources:
https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2024/9/23/widener-library-harvard-palestine-protest/
https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2024/10/3/students-suspended-library-palestine-protest/
https://www.harvardmagazine.com/2024/11/harvard-library-protests
https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2024/10/17/harvard-faculty-hold-library-study-in-demonstration-in-solidarity-with-punished-pro-palestine-students/
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/faculty-issues/academic-freedom/2024/10/25/harvard-faculty-suspended-library-over-protest
https://apnews.com/article/harvard-faculty-propalestinian-protests-library-suspension-872d7b9862ecc6463d436eecee45ff12