Update on the encampment

Dear members of the MIT community,

We write to provide an update on the campus encampment.

We began the day with another round of discussions with the student leaders from the encampment. It quickly became clear that their primary demand had not changed and that we would not be able to reach an agreement.

At midday, Student Life staff handed a written advisory to students making clear that if they didn’t leave the encampment by 2:30 p.m., they would face discipline. By 2:30, most students had left the enclosed tent area. Five remained, and many students gathered right outside the encampment.

Around that time, a large number of outside demonstrators arrived, in part because of a call on social media to students in the area to join our students, and in part because of a planned public protest. Cambridge police and state police were present to assist MIT police in managing the crowd. At around 6:00 p.m., an individual jumped over the fencing surrounding the remaining tents, causing a surge, and soon the area was breached.

As we write, about 150 students and others are standing in a circle around the tents and others are nearby chanting. While no arrests have been made on campus, police officers from MIT, Cambridge and the state remain on the scene to preserve public safety. MIT buildings in the area remain on card-access only.

We have much work still to do to resolve this situation, and will continue to communicate as needed.

Sincerely,

Sally Kornbluth
President

Glen Shor
Executive Vice President and Treasurer

Melissa Nobles
Chancellor