Chancellor Donde Plowman sent an email to the University of Tennessee community following the arrests of seven students and two community members on Thursday night for violating the university’s Outdoor Facility Usage for Authorized Events policy.

“This was not the result any of us wanted,” Plowman said in the email. “We will continue to engage with all our students to provide support, and we will also continue to enforce the law and university policy for the benefit and protection of everyone in our community.”

Those arrested had been demonstrating in support of Palestine at the UT College of Law lawn since early Wednesday afternoon. On Wednesday night, UT administration told the group to disperse or they would receive felony charges. Police donning riot gear showed up, but no arrests or apprehensions were made, and the group dispersed.

When police arrived on Thursday, nine people were arrested and barricades were set up to prevent any further demonstrations.

“Free speech is the backbone of any university, where debate should lead to better solutions and a more durable democracy,” Plowman said in the email. “We recognize and protect members of the campus community’s right to free speech. We apply laws and policies to everyone equally and without prejudice to preserve the use and enjoyment of university property and protect the safety of members of our community.

“A group of individuals does not have the right to monopolize university property for an indefinite period of time.”

The group of demonstrators is not affiliated with Students for Justice in Palestine, the student organization that held a vigil on Wednesday afternoon. Plowman pointed this out in her message and called the group by the College of Law an “unplanned assembly.”

“The university’s approach in managing situations such as this one begins with warnings from administrators, and those warnings include notifying participants about the potential escalation to law enforcement if necessary,” Plowman said in the email. “Participants are given a reasonable opportunity to conform their behavior to law and policies.”

In her email, Plowman repeatedly mentions the communication between the UT administration and the demonstrators. On Thursday, this took place in a meeting at approximately 7:30 p.m. The Daily Beacon was denied access to the meeting.

The policy the university cited states that non-university-initiated events must identify a sponsor to be considered an authorized event. The group of demonstrators did not meet the central criteria for an on-campus event. The criteria include being a registered student organization, a university unit, or a department or persons invited by the university.

Outdoor spaces on campus must be reserved through the Office of Campus Event Services at least seven business days in advance, but under the UT System code classification FI00022-K, this requirement is not meant to interfere with spontaneous events.

Here is the full email Plowman sent out on Friday morning.

Dear Volunteers,

I want to update our campus community about events on campus last night.

Free speech is the backbone of any university, where debate should lead to better solutions and a more durable democracy. We recognize and protect members of the campus community’s right to free speech. We apply laws and policies to everyone equally and without prejudice to preserve the use and enjoyment of university property and protect the safety of members of our community. A group of individuals does not have the right to monopolize university property for an indefinite period of time.

We have been working for days to engage some of our students, beginning with a registered student organization that held a planned civil event on campus on Wednesday followed by a productive meeting with administrators yesterday.

Following the vigil, an unplanned assembly gathered and made its way to the lawn of the College of Law, where final exams are underway. Several university leaders worked all afternoon Wednesday to communicate permissible and impermissible activities to the assembled group and their leaders.

The university’s approach in managing situations such as this one begins with warnings from administrators, and those warnings include notifying participants about the potential escalation to law enforcement if necessary. Participants are given a reasonable opportunity to conform their behavior to law and policies. Campus leaders worked into the night Wednesday following this approach. As we engaged Wednesday night into Thursday morning, the group of protestors decided to leave with no arrests necessary.

The group returned later Thursday, and again campus leaders worked throughout the day to make protesters aware that their event was violating the policy on the use of outdoor space and their plans for the evening would also violate state law. Campus leaders gave protestors time to speak within their group, then Vice Chancellor for Student Life Frank Cuevas delivered a message to the group personally warning them to disband or the UT Police Department would respond. Last night, UTPD arrested nine people—seven students and two people not affiliated with the university. All nine received citations and were released. The students will face sanctions under the Student Code of Conduct.

This was not the result any of us wanted. We will continue to engage with all our students to provide support, and we will also continue to enforce the law and university policy for the benefit and protection of everyone in our community. We ask that all Volunteers express themselves in ways that respect the rights of others.

Donde Plowman

Chancellor

Required reading

Police arrive to Tennessee College of Law lawn, protestors in support of Palestine disperse 

Recapping Wednesday’s protests in support of Palestine on the University of Tennessee’s campus

UT students in support of Palestine gather outside of College of Law