PSLM Follows Detailed Plan

The command came quickly.

"3-2-1, GO, GO, GO!!!" Alex Horowitz yelled as students ran from Matthews to Mass. Hall.

At 1:23 p.m. yesterday, the protesters stormed the building in a carefully crafted plan to seize control of the building. Three teams, each with different objectives, seized the bathroom, the conference room and administrators' offices as they entered the building, carrying with them backpacks filled with granola, peanut butter, jam and bread.

As police arrived, protestors began filling portable tanks with water from the bathroom in case water was shut off to the building. The rest lined the main hallway and linked arms in solidarity.

After weeks of planning, PSLM began a major action yesterday afternoon in a cramped office in the basement of Matthews Hall. More than 60 supporters, mostly undergraduates, gathered after lunch yesterday before storming Mass. Hall.

The protesters followed strict rules-not speaking to police or staff and instead handing them statements explaining why they were demonstrating.

The number one rule, explained leaders of the protest, was don't touch anyone. If police tried to remove them, they planned to resist until they were put under arrest. Lawyers from the National Lawyer Guild were standing by if police made arrests, and protestors carried lists of professors ready to post bail if necessary.

Police officers who arrived on the scene of the protest escorted an National Public Radio reporter out and threatened to arrest Maple J. Razsa, a graduate student who was videotaping the takeover.

The chanting continued as Harvard University Police Department (HUPD) Chief Francis "Bud" Riley arrived and went into the office of President Neil L. Rudenstine.

Over the next two hours, an uneasy peace settled on the building, with students and administrators coexisting.

Receptionist Janice Braxton dealt with bewildered delivery people and answered calls with a hurried "Good afternoon, Mass. Hall reception, how may I help you?," while a student practiced yoga on the floor in front of her. Across the hall in the conference room, students played Hearts and began digging into their peanut butter supplies. Students also napped in the hallway and did reading for class.

Before leaving himself, Riley laid down some ground rules for protestors-be careful with the antiques, keep the doorways clear. Riley pointed out the fire exits before leaving the scene himself.

"We're not going to arrest anyone," Riley laughed. "We know them by their first names."

UMass-Amherst Professor Robert Wolff `54, who joined protestors, gave a rousing speech before leaving mid-afternoon.

"You'll never convince them you're doing the right thing, but you might embarrass them into doing something," Wolff encouraged students.

Administrators met in Rudenstine's office for most of the afternoon, drawing up a statement to release to the media.

Students were respectful of the building, carefully wiping pizza crumbs off the conference table and preparing food in the bathroom to protect Mass. Hall's antique Oriental rugs.

The evening's first battle revolved around a 5 p.m. police order to shut all the building's windows. The interior quickly became hot and stuffy, and the protestors became demoralized as police repeatedly shut windows opened by students.

After more than five hours indoors, the stress began to wear on the protestors. During team meetings, students expressed frustration and said they felt powerless-the University was not negotiating, and merely seemed to be ignoring the protestors.

"We're still students and they have all of the authority, and they're letting us know," one student said.

One student confronted HUPD Sergeant Robert Cooper about the window conflict.

"It's sort of a health concern for us," she said.

"Well, you don't have to stay here," Cooper smiled.

Shortly after 7:25 p.m., the issue came to head as students linked arms in the conference room and began shouting. Officers immediately entered the room, and tried to unsuccessfully close the windows. The protesters reopened the windows as fast as officers could close them.

After a standoff lasting less than five minutes, with officers standing stoically inside while students chanted, other officers held the windows closed from the outside.

Eventually, officers backed off, allowing the windows to stay open and air to circulate inside. Moods improved as the cool fresh air spread.

As the evening wore on, a battle of wills began in a rear corner office. Riley attempted to remove protesters from the office and when that failed he stationed two officers to guard the office.

Any student who left was not allowed back in. Over the course of the evening, the number of students inside the office dwindled from five to two hard-core supporters.

Maddy and Allegra, protesters who only gave their first names for security reasons, held out late into the evening, eating food handed to them by students outside the office.

Finally, the two could hold out no longer as nature called. Over a late dinner, students decided to demand bathroom breaks for their peers.

"We're just asking for some human dignity," one student said.

After tense negotiations with HUPD Captain Jack Stanton, the two sides agreed to allow two students to spell the holdouts as they went to the bathroom before returning to the office.

Before heading home for the night, Associate Dean of the College David P. Illingworth `71 stopped by to chat with protestors for one final time. He said he did not expect any action that night.

"Everyone wants to keep the temperature down," Illingworth said.

-Staff writer Garrett M. Graff can be reached at ggraff@fas.harvard.edu.