A University of Massachusetts Amherst student is facing a sudden setback to his plans to study abroad in Spain after participating in an anti-Israel sit-in on campus and defying police officers’ orders to leave.
UMass Amherst junior Aidan O’ Neill, along with two other students, had their eligibility to study abroad revoked after their participation in an Oct. 25 protest in support of Palestinians led to arrests and disciplinary probation.
After refusing police orders to leave the building when it closed at 6 p.m., 56 students, including O’Neill, and one staff member were arrested for trespassing and then placed on disciplinary probation until the end of the school year. spring semester.
O’Neill’s eligibility to study abroad was then revoked because he had signed an agreement prohibiting students from participating in the program if they have pending legal or disciplinary actions or are on academic probation.
The initial protest on Oct. 25 involved 500 students demanding that UMass sever ties with defense contractor Raytheon Technologies, a producer of missile components for Israel’s Iron Dome.
UMass Amherst junior Aidan O’ Neill (pictured) and two other students had their study abroad eligibility revoked after their participation in an Oct. 25 protest.
After refusing police orders to leave a locked building, 56 students, including O’Neill, were arrested for trespassing and later placed on disciplinary probation.
The protest demanded that UMass sever ties with defense contractor Raytheon Technologies, a producer of missile components for Israel’s Iron Dome.
The Iron Dome is an Israeli all-weather mobile air defense system that successfully intercepts more than 90 percent of projectiles. Since the unprovoked Hamas massacre of October 7, More than 11,000 rockets have been fired towards Israel.
O’Neill, along with faculty members, are now fighting back, emphasizing the right to express opposition to what they call the university’s alleged support for “genocide.”
“Losing my overseas eligibility at the last second was just heartbreaking,” O’Neill told the Boston Globe. ‘I was practicing my right as a student to report that the university finances a genocide. Honestly, it seemed crazy and absurd to me that the university would go so far to punish me.’
The students argue that their punishment is disproportionately harsh because of their political views, despite the university’s claim that it is simply adhering to established policies regardless of the content of the protest.
Faculty members, including Rachel Mordecai and Jason Moralee, have joined O’Neill, denouncing the denial of their opportunity to study abroad as excessive punishment for “peaceful political expression.”
O’Neill “was engaging in a peaceful expression of his political beliefs,” Rachel Mordecai, O’Neill’s faculty advisor, told the Boston Globe.
‘This denial of the opportunity to study abroad constitutes a disproportionate penalty for what Aidan participated in.
Mordecai wrote a letter defending O’Neill, signed by 23 other faculty members. The statement, obtained by the Globe, called O’Neill “an exceptionally successful and talented student.”
Pictured: Protesters and the University of Massachusetts Police Department during the Oct. 25 sit-in.
O’Neill’s eligibility to study abroad was then revoked as he had signed an agreement prohibiting students from participating in the program if they have pending legal or disciplinary actions or are on academic probation.
O’Neill was scheduled to travel to Barcelona on Jan. 3 for his study abroad program, which he had been planning since last spring. Now, the junior will stay in his hometown of Scituate until he starts the next semester in the spring.
Students were told they were no longer eligible weeks before their trip, leaving them with thousands of dollars in fees and travel expenses. One student is now threatening legal action against the school.
Jason Moralee, associate dean for Research and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, also advocated for O’Neill and the other two students by urging his fellow administrators to quickly clear them to study abroad.
Moralee noted that students with code of conduct violations, academic probation or other issues are routinely allowed to study abroad.
He argued that students with clear backgrounds, like O’Neill’s, who participated in protests should not be hindered in their eligibility to participate in the study abroad program.
“Surely, peaceful protest by exemplary students whose background is clear… is a crime that in itself should not prevent students from studying abroad,” he told the Globe.
But University spokesperson Ed Blaguszewski defended the IPO’s decision, stating that the decision aligns with the university’s past practices and the Student Participation Agreement signed by each student.
O’Neill, along with faculty members, are now fighting back, emphasizing the right to express opposition to what they call the university’s alleged support for “genocide.”
Students were told they were no longer eligible weeks before their trip, leaving them with thousands of dollars in fees and travel expenses. One student is now threatening legal action against the school.
‘To participate in a UMass Amherst study abroad program, students must be in good academic standing with the university and comply with the university’s Student Code of Conduct,’ he said in a statement to the Globe.
“Consistent with the university’s past practice and the Student Participation Agreement signed by each student, IPO revoked these students’ eligibility to study abroad during the upcoming winter and spring terms.”
Contrary to the university’s position, O’Neill and the other students argue that its disciplinary treatment deviates from past practices.
O’Neill and the other students, faced with uncertainty, were informed of their inability to study abroad on the last day of the semester, leaving them in a state of limbo.
One student, represented by attorney Shahily ‘Shay’ Negron, claims he faces up to $20,000 in fees for the overseas program.
Negron emphasized the emotional and financial toll the ordeal has had on the student.
“They have been extremely distraught,” Negron told the Globe. ‘This whole ordeal has had an emotional effect on my client. [and] financially.’
UMass is “harming my client because he exercised his right to free speech,” he added.
O’Neill said he is still considering participating in a study abroad program next year, when his parole becomes clear.
“If things had happened differently, I would be in Barcelona right now, living with my host family and having the experience of studying abroad,” he told the Globe. ‘I feel really crushed by my university. I feel like my trust has just been betrayed for the last time.