By SUSAN JONES
Several students who were issued summonses last week for allegedly violating the student code of conduct demonstration guidelines during the Sept. 29 Board of Trustees meeting had their cases thrown out by the Office of Student Conduct on Oct. 30 for lack of evidence.
The students from Fossil Free Pitt and Trans Action Building PGH stood up repeatedly in groups of two or three during the Trustees meeting to voice their complaints and concerns (see story from Oct. 6 University Times).
A University spokesperson said Pitt Police referred the students to Student Conduct. “The protesters in attendance at the Board of Trustees meeting did not follow repeated requests to cease their disruption of the meeting. After several warnings, they were escorted out of the room so the meeting could proceed.”
Three protesters not affiliated with Pitt were charged with disorderly conduct and pleaded not guilty. Iris Olson, a Pitt staff member and one of the protesters with Trans Action Building, said the three non-affiliated protesters were community members standing in solidarity with the group — and did not speak at the protest — to support the need for three fully staffed, in-person resource centers for the LGBTQ+ community, along with trans-inclusive health care and housing.
Olson, who uses they/them pronouns, said Human Resources contacted their supervisors this week about their participation in the Trustees meeting protest. Olson said they took board meeting time off as part of their PTO and informed their supervisors ahead of time.
The Student Code of Conduct says, “With the approval of the Board of Trustees, the University affirms the following student rights and privileges: To engage in peaceful, orderly, and nondestructive picketing, protests, and demonstrations, to the extent they do not violate public law and do not interfere with the educational process or the rights of other members of the University.”
The protesters interrupted the meeting as members were trying to elect Louis Cestello as the board’s new chair. As the students tried to speak, Cestello repeatedly said, “There’s established procedures for bringing issues and concerns to the board. You have not been following these. As was announced at the beginning of the meeting, participation is limited to the members of the board and to those the board has invited to take part. … Continued disruptions preventing the orderly progression of board business will not be tolerated, and further disruptions will be dealt with as appropriate.”
Students continued speaking as they were peacefully escorted from the room by Pitt Police officers, although even those in the room could barely make out what was being said as Cestello reiterated board policies.
Several of the students told the University Times that Pitt Police took down their names and student ID numbers after they were escorted out of the meeting. Thomas Allen, a junior political science student and one of the Fossil Free Pitt protesters, said the group has had several interactions with Pitt Police, but never, to his knowledge, has anyone been called in for a student conduct charge.
He and other members of Fossil Free Pitt, who are demanding Pitt divest immediately from fossil fuel investments in its endowment, said they are always careful to follow the student conduct rules on demonstrations.
The University spokesperson said previous incidents at the Board of Trustees’ meetings “have followed our Student Code of Conduct process in a similar manner. Each case referred to the Office of Student Conduct is managed on a case-by-case basis.”
Trans Action Building and Fossil Free Pitt said in messages Oct. 31 on Instagram that they will continue to fight for their causes.
“Trans Action Building will not be silenced and will continue to stand for/with LGBTQIA+, BIPOC, and disability communities,” the group’s post said. “We all deserve a campus that is safe, has the necessary resources for all and has effective support systems.”
The Fossil Free Pitt Instagram post said: “We will not be intimidated. We will not be silenced. We will continue to fight for climate justice and stand in solidarity with the people Pitt continually seeks to disempower. Your claims are false and were easily disproven during our conduct hearings.”
After the Trustees meeting, Chancellor Joan Gabel said, “I absolutely respect their right to protest and we’re in a public meeting and they have the opportunity to protest, and then we restored the process of the board meeting in due course so that the business can continue. The opportunity to either have a regularly scheduled meeting — some of which we’ve already done — or to engage in other forms of protest at different events or different points on campus, I think is absolutely available to every constituency and stakeholder.”
A University spokesperson said members of the public may request an invitation to address the board by submitting a written request 15 days prior to public meetings, addressed to the chairperson of the board and sent in care of the Office of the Secretary. The request should include the topic that would be discussed. But, the spokesperson said, “All requests will be considered by the chairperson. If an invitation is extended, it will be upon recognition by the chairperson at an appropriate time during the meeting.”
In at least the past five years, the only people who have addressed the board during its public meetings, other than Trustees, were members of Pitt’s administration.
Many government agencies, such as Pittsburgh City Council and Planning Commission, allow the public to register and speak for a specific amount of time, often three minutes or less.
Susan Jones is editor of the University Times. Reach her at suejones@pitt.edu or 724-244-4042.
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