OSU student protesters threatened with arrest, expulsion

A group of Ohio State University students staged a sit-in outside of President Michael Drake’s office around 9:30 p.m. last night. It was intended to last until a list of demands were met, but the protest was cut short following threats of arrest and expulsion from university police.

The protest took place in Bricker Hall, which closes at 5:30 p.m. Since the students were in the building past closing time, a statement released by the university called the protest “illegal.”

The statement said the students dispersed of their own accord following threats of arrest.

“The methods employed by this group were outside the scope of permitted practices. We actively encourage dialogue with students on a wide variety of issues,” the statement read.

Protester Laura Kington disagreed.

“To me it was a forceful removal. Police were in the room with us ready to arrest people,” Kington told 614NOW. “I don’t think that statement is not accurate at all–we were forced out.”

Kington said Ohio State Senior Vice President Jay Kasey spoke on the phone with President Drake during the sit-in, who communicated that Drake would not engage with the students’ demands.

“That was upsetting–that President Drake would rather arrest and expel these students than even listen to these demands,” Kington said.

Calling itself #ReclaimOSU, the group is made of up several different student groups who have had formal requests for change denied by the university.

The list of demands issued last night centered around administrative transparency for the public university, including calls for “complete, comprehensive and detailed access to the Ohio State budget and investments.”

The group also aligned itself with the “OSU Divest” movement, calling for a divestment in companies involved in “well-documented human rights abuses in the Occupied Palestinian Territories,” including Hewlett Packard, Caterpillar Inc. and G4S.

Kington is a recent OSU graduate who is involved with the Real Food Challenge, which calls for an increase in the “production and purchase of locally and sustainably sourced food to 40% by 2025.”

She says the group began speaking with faculty two years ago, meeting with President Drake and other university officials and working with student government to pass a resolution towards the group’s goals.

When they submitted the student government resolution through the proper channels, they received a letter saying university officials would not be signing it.

“That was really agitating to student groups after going through that formal process,” Kington said. “They’re telling the students that they can’t lead the process.”

Kington says the #ReclaimOSU group is currently planning the next step, and hopes to have a press conference this afternoon.

Read the 1-page list of demands below.

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