Harvard and MIT Students Protest Closure of Campus and Dorms Over Coronavirus
“Students couldn’t sleep overnight, couldn’t eat. People broke down crying because they thought they had to move out as early as Friday”
There are some situations that just won’t be solved by protests. This is one of them.
Campus Reform reports:
Harvard, MIT students & faculty defiant amid colleges’ coronavirus commands
With colleges and universities closing across the country due to coronavirus concerns, students and faculty at some campuses have held protests over decisions affecting on-campus housing.
Harvard Law students protested outside the Dean of Students’ office while resident advisors met with campus officials to discuss concerns from students who live on campus. One student, Felipe Hernandez, told the Harvard Crimson that Harvard’s decision to vacate the campus has “put a lot of students into panic, anxiety, emotional distress.”
“Students couldn’t sleep overnight, couldn’t eat. People broke down crying because they thought they had to move out as early as Friday,” Hernandez added.
According to the Harvard Crimson, Dean of Students Marcia Sells sent an email to law students stating that Harvard Law School would provide financial assistance to students who needed to travel to relocate. Sells also wrote that students would not be evicted without a place to stay.
At MIT, approximately 50 undergraduate students, graduate students, and some faculty held a sit-in at the school’s Department of Student Life.
According to organizers, the protesters were calling for MIT to reconsider the petitions from students who have requested to stay on campus. They also asked for international students to receive housing.
Lilly Chin, an MIT graduate student and one of the organizers, lamented that there has been no official response from MIT on what students are supposed to do.
“There’s also been no discussion of how people can pay for their flights home, the boxes and storage,” Chin said told the Daily Beast.
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Comments
I wonder if these students are considered “tenants” with the rights of tenants? Eviction laws in Mass are very tenant friendly.
100 years ago, I used to stay in my college dorm during winter vacations, when students were prohibited. I had to be sure no lights were visible from outside to keep security from finding me, and when they did confront me, I was always just stopping in my room to get some clothes/books/whatever. But I didn’t have the funds to get a hotel for the month, there were no short term rentals, and to heck with their winter vacation closure of the dorms! So my prayers are with the displaced students.