College Retracts Warning Letters

Some members of the Progressive Student Labor Movement (PSLM) received their second unexpected letter from the administration in the past two weeks Monday—this time apologizing to certain students who had been warned of suspension following a protest they had not actually participated in.

A number of PSLM members had received a letter two weeks ago regarding a 15-minute “teach-in” in Mass. Hall held in late February.

The letter warned students that they could be suspended if they took part in similar actions in the future, since they had already been placed on probation following last spring’s Mass. Hall sit-in.

But some of the students who received the letter said they had not actually participated in the teach-in and alerted their senior tutors.

According to the letter these PSLM members received Monday—signed by David B. Fithian, associate dean of the college and secretary of the Administrative Board—members of the Harvard University Police Department (HUPD) were unable to confirm these students had actually taken part in the teach-in.

“Based on your report, we asked the Harvard University Police Department to reconfirm their earlier identification of you as one of the students present in Massachusetts Hall that day,” the letter reads.

It goes on to tell students that letters of warning that had been placed in their files had since been removed.

“The police have not been able to confirm your participation in the disruption with sufficient confidence for the College, given our presumption that you are being truthful, to appropriately allow the letters of warning to stand,” the letter reads.

But PSLM members said they took issue with both the wording and the content of the letter.

According to PSLM member Ari Z. Weisbard ’02, he had never received any indication that a letter of warning had been placed in his file in the first place.

Weisbard—who said he contacted his senior tutor and sent a letter to Dean of the College Harry R. Lewis ’68 following the first letter—said he believed he should have been given the chance to go before the Ad Board before receiving a formal warning.

“They chose a list of the people who normally protest, and sent out a punishment to all of us without checking anything,” Weisbard said.

“It makes it that much more

egregious they didn’t go through the normal ad board procedure,” he continued.

Weisbard noted that PSLM members who did participate in both the teach-in and last spring’s sit-in now have letters of warning in their files.

Fithian could not be reached late last night, and Lewis declined to comment on the letters.

PSLM member Miranda S. Richmond ’02, who also received the letter Monday, said she felt “kind of disgusted” after receiving the apology Monday.

She said she felt the original letter had been sent to her only because of her regular involvement in PSLM.

“It’s a scary mistake. It’s a little bit disturbing I’ve been blacklisted, or earmarked by whoever,” she said.