Dear Campus Community Members,

On Wednesday, members of Swarthmore Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and other protesters entered Parrish Hall and took over the first floor of the East Wing. We instructed the students to leave on multiple occasions, both verbally and in writing. They failed to do so. We attempted to negotiate a reasonable, peaceful conclusion to the protest, but those efforts were unsuccessful. Protesters escalated the situation, including by ignoring Public Safety officers who were attempting to keep the building secure and by opening exterior doors on multiple occasions to allow additional protesters inside, some of whom we now know were not members of our community.

I have affirmed time and again the College’s belief in and support of individuals’ rights to peaceful protest and dissent. I have also been clear that those rights do not extend so far as to infringe on the ability of other students, faculty, and staff members to fully engage in the life of the campus, nor do they give license for protesters to disrupt the essential operations of the College.

Several of the individuals involved in Wednesday’s events failed to adhere to those standards. Their actions include repeatedly banging on office doors and the walls of the corridor, breaking into multiple staff member offices, destroying a OneCard reader used to access an office, damaging an office door frame, using a bullhorn indoors, and other alleged behavior that clearly violates the Student Code of Conduct.

All of this took place in the larger context of a rapidly changing landscape in which many of the values that bind us together are under threat. We cannot ignore the ways in which some of the behavior we experienced Wednesday put the safety and well-being of our community at risk. SJP’s social media posts falsely stated that students were locked inside Parrish Hall and urged individuals from beyond campus to come to Swarthmore and join the protests. The posts were quickly amplified and shared widely, prompting threatening responses from outsiders across the political and ideological spectrum. The group’s actions also led law enforcement agencies to contact the College directly, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), to alert us of the heightened social media activity focused on Swarthmore. (To be clear, and contrary to the false claims that SJP and others continue to circulate, the College did not contact the FBI or any other federal law enforcement agency in response to the protest or related activities.)

Wednesday’s actions constitute significant, numerous violations of the Student Code of Conduct, and individuals found responsible for violating College policies will be held accountable.

As detailed in the Student Handbook, student organizations are also subject to the College’s policies and procedures. SJP organized and led the actions described above, creating an untenable learning, living, and working environment that no member of our community should have to endure. The group’s alleged behavior runs counter to the College’s values and our commitment to inclusivity and well-being. As such, and while the Division of Student Affairs investigates these allegations, we have notified Swarthmore’s SJP chapter that the group is on an interim suspension, effective immediately. During this interim period, SJP will be unable to access College funds, schedule or host events on campus, or access any other College resources available to student organizations.

Swarthmore will continue to embrace the spirit of protest that has long been part of the College’s ethos. It is one way to explore and interrogate new ideas, expose us to others' life experiences, and advocate for changes that lead to a better world. As we uphold and promote the important role of peaceful protest and dissent, I hope we will do so in ways that result in meaningful, productive dialogue rather than deeper divisions.

Sincerely,

Val Smith
President