Wash U officials are disputing what the protesting ex-hunger-striking sudents are telling reporters:
University officials said Monday that no meetings are scheduled this week with students occupying the admissions office, despite what students had said.
Chancellor Mark Wrighton said Monday in a letter to the university community that he had reached an understanding Saturday with four of the students on several issues surrounding their protest over living wages for campus workers. He said the students understood they would have to end their sit-in and hunger strike immediately as a condition of the agreement.
The students ended their hunger strike that night but continued the sit-in. Wrighton said in his letter that “others outside my meeting with the four students” had altered the terms of the agreement, so he told the students late Saturday that the agreement was void.
“In fact, none of what happened in that meeting is currently under consideration – due to the failure of the sit-in participants to proceed with the commitment they gave to terminate their sit-in.” Wrighton wrote.
About a dozen students with the Student Worker Alliance have been sitting in at the university’s admissions office since April 4.
Maybe the hunger pains were too great for the students to understand the terms of the agreement.