Pulitzer-prize winning author Colson Whitehead announced he'll withdraw as this year’s commencement speaker, citing the arrests of more than 130 people on campus earlier this week.
Posting on social media, the author of titles such as “The Underground Railroad” and “The Nickel Boys,” says he had been looking forward to the event, but believed that quote “calling the cops on peaceful protesters is a shameful act.”
Whitehead was slated to speak at the undergraduate commencement ceremony on May 18.
I sent this message to the UMass administration yesterday: "I was looking forward to speaking next week at UMass Amherst. I visited two years ago and everyone was awesome. My nephew graduated from there and got a great education. But calling the cops on peaceful protesters is a shameful act...” 1/2
— Colson Whitehead (@colson.bsky.social) 2024-05-09T17:52:54.203Z
His decision came days after police broke up a pro-Palestinian encampment on campus Tuesday night, arresting 132 people in the process, according to the university.
In a letter to the campus community, UMass Amherst Chancellor Javier Reyes says of those arrested, 70 were students and six were faculty members.
Reyes cited a need to ensure safety for campus members when he requested the UMass Police department clear the site, calling it an “unauthorized fortified encampment that had been erected on the South Lawn of the Student Union.”
The letter read in-part “Safety, wellbeing, and a sense of belonging are paramount for our community’s ability to thrive, and I recognize that there is work to do as we restore trust with those who feel harmed by the university’s actions.”
The actions have attracted widespread criticism, including a vote of no confidence in the chancellor by members of the Student Government Association.
In a statement, the ACLU of Massachusetts said “calling heavily armed police on student political expression” was an “inherently dangerous choice.”
Speaking on WAMC’s Congressional Corner, Democratic Massachusetts Congressman Jim McGovern says while he retains confidence in Reyes, he believed Tuesday’s arrests were inappropriate, especially when the semester is nearing its end.
“From all I can ascertain is that these protests were peaceful, and people weren't being blocked from going to class or taking their exams,” he said. “And in all likelihood, my guess is that they would probably peter out as we get closer and closer to the end of the year, but the bottom line is - I wish they hadn't happened.”
In the wake of the no confidence vote, a UMass Amherst spokesperson released a statement from Marty Meehan, president of the University of Massachusetts system.
Meehan expressed his full support for Reyes, adding that “the circumstances on the Amherst campus are in no way isolated and are part of a national trend taking place on college and university campuses across the country.”
He also referenced how Reyes had been engaging with students “in good faith discussions” and “offered meaningful paths to a resolution.”
According to the university, Reyes met with students for discussions hours before the encampment crackdown.
In a previous letter, Reyes said he listened to students’ concerns over the span of an hour-and-a-half, discussing demands that included financial divestment, to the state of students’ civil court cases following arrests in October 2023.
The incident involved dozens of students being charged with trespassing during a sit-in protest on campus.
Ultimately, Reyes said, demonstrators “rejected our offers for continued civil discourse to help bridge our differences and refused to dismantle their encampment.”
