BELCHERTOWN — Fifteen University of Massachusetts Amherst students received probationary terms Wednesday following their arrests at a sit-in protest on campus the night before.
Each of the 15 students — 14 undergraduates and one graduate — pleaded not guilty in Eastern Hampshire District Court to a charge of trespassing after they staged a protest to call for the university system to abandon its investment in fossil fuel companies.
School officials ordered the protesters removed from the Whitmore Administration Building about 9 p.m. Tuesday, according to the university. The students wanted UMass to commit to divesting from fossil fuel companies by the end of Wednesday and have said they will continue to occupy the building until their demand is met.
The 15 students will have their cases continued for four months while they serve probation, District Court Judge Thomas Estes ruled. They will complete community service in lieu of the monthly probation fee, according to the district attorney’s office.
After the four months, provided the students complete the service hours, their cases will be dropped.
The protesters arrested Tuesday dubbed themselves the “first 15” and adopted the Twitter handle #first15.
Another 19 protesters within the same group were arrested Wednesday evening when they remained in Whitmore after hours.
But would multiple arrests thin the ranks of protesters and dilute their impact?
“We have more than enough people to make up for that,” said Filipe Carvalho, a Divest UMass spokesman.
In a statement Tuesday, University President Martin Meehan and board of trustees President Victor Woolridge pledged to “advocate for a policy that would see the five-campus UMass system divest” at upcoming meetings of the foundation that controls the university’s $770 million endowment.
It’s not enough just to have that show of support, Carvalho said. The group is demanding immediate divestment from fossil-fuel investments.
“We appreciate that they’re behind the cause,” he added. “And we know (UMass) can do something and believe in the leadership to do so.”
For all the seriousness of the question and the criminal proceedings, the students and judge enjoyed some lighthearted banter in court Wednesday about the climate-change concerns that brought them together.
Estes at one point looked out at the gathering of students in the courtroom gallery. “You know,” he said, “when I read the papers and drove over here today, I was expecting a bunch of bikes out front.”
Chuckles sounded around the courtroom, including from the students.
“We carpooled,” one of them quipped.
The judge’s banter took a more earnest turn when he questioned why the first 15 didn’t use public transportation that morning.
“I actually would’ve been proud of you if you had taken the bus and walked into the courtroom,” Estes said. “That would’ve been something.
“If you’re all protesting this,” he continued, “it matters how you spend your money.”
The students gazed at Estes and nodded, with some murmuring in apparent agreement.
If the plan is to continue to fight against the use of fossil fuels, the judge told the students, then don’t invest in them yourselves.
Michael Majchrowicz can be reached at mmajchrowicz@gazettenet.com.