Actions have consequences. Perhaps these students should have thought of this before they committed an illegal act.
The College Fix reports:
UMass students arrested for illegal sit-in complain they now aren’t allowed to study abroadSeveral University of Massachusetts Amherst students arrested for an illegal sit-in protest in October are miffed that they’re now not permitted to enroll in study abroad programs.Fifty-six students and faculty were charged with trespassing during an anti-Israel occupation of the Whitmore Administration Building after closing hours, according to the Daily Hampshire Gazette.One student who planned to study abroad in the coming semester is now considering a federal lawsuit.The (anonymous) student’s attorney, Shay Negrón, said UMass is “oppressing” her client and their “right to the First Amendment.”“By imposing these sanctions on my client, UMass is sending a very disturbing message: If anyone exercises their right to free speech on this particular subject matter on this campus, they will be severely punished,” Negrón said. “This is very serious and scary.”Negrón added “[The student] shouldn’t be disproportionately reprimanded for any of these things that they were doing when they were exercising their right for free speech.”The student currently is “on the hook” for some $20,000 related to studying abroad.International Programs Office Director Kalpen Trivedi noted in an email to the affected students that they possibly could be readmitted to study abroad pending appeals to their sanctions.“If there is a different decision from the Dean of Students as a result of your appeal, IPO will reconsider your eligibility for study abroad,” Trivedi wrote.Negrón says her client should be allowed to participate in study abroad while their appeal is pending.Another student disciplined for the sit-in, Aidan O’Neill, said he “didn’t know” his arrest would affect his ability to study abroad. He said he’s been able to “secure housing” for the new semester but “had to pay hefty withdrawal fees” for his planned time at the University of Barcelona.“I was arrested because I was at this peaceful protest,” O’Neill said. “It never felt right to me that I got arrested for that and standing up for something that my university is doing.”
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