Dear Friends,
The past few posts have questioned my legitimacy for wanting to seek Justice at Brandeis. I want to tell you all a small part of my story that makes me feel discriminated against by Brandeis. It is discrimination based on color, religion and national origin. As a result, my rights to a fair trial have been destroyed.
Last semester, a Brandeis public safety officer stopped a friend and myself. We were asked if we go to school here. We said yes but they did not believe us. We were asked to get into the car and go back to our rooms to show them identification.
At a later time, a police officer told my friend, “I worked in the projects and I know how to deal with these kind of criminals”. To someone else they said “I was from Pakistan or whatever.”
When the police came to arrest me they came in (all 3 of them) to my room with their pepper sprays. I was beaten outside my room in my dorm. People in my hall can testify.
Later on during the UBSC hearing I was not allowed to bring any witnesses. The only person I could bring was an advisor, Professor Fellman, who was kind enough to believe in me and stand up for a fair process.
The first witness that was brought against me was the person I had the fight with himself (the accuser). Obviously, I knew his opinion, although he admitted to pulling down his hood, rolling up his sleeves, and being ready to fight.
The second witness said that she saw my accuser start the fight.
The third said he did not see who started the fight.
And the third witness, a senior citizen, said that she didn’t see who started the fight but that we were both fighting. She said she saw
“A big Arab boy beating a small Jewish boy on the Sabbath. Some new gang rite of passage to beat up a Jewish boy on the Sabbath”.
So out of the 4 witnesses all them saw both of us fighting each other, one actually saw the accuser start and none of them saw me start it.
Both me and the other student were injured. I faced injuries and was on my way to the health center to get treatment when I was stopped by Officer Dana Kelley to come to the station. I was unable to seek treatment.
The same weekend, I was accused of a separate incident. The Brandeis police filed a case against me but several days after this, the accuser dropped the charges. The accuser sent several emails and a letter to the Office of Student Life but I was still accused. I was still tried and Director of Student Conduct Erika Lamarre, used old charges against me to manipulate the UBSC. This ultimately worsened my case in the room.
Erika had chosen to grant me a trial for one case over another. I wanted to speak to the UBSC for both cases. Erika said she would speak to me about my options. However, when I came to our meeting she said my time was up and I had no chance of being heard for both cases.
So now here I am, suspended one month later with no justice. I am the first person to have ever been suspended at Brandeis, for a fight that no one saw me start. Yet I was suspended and have no home. I waited 2 hours outside Rick Sawyers office to see him. I had nowhere to live and wanted to know what was the reasoning for it.
Thursday, I had a meeting with Maggie Balch, Associate Dean of Student Life. I was told that my appeal was accepted. It has been almost a month since I submitted two appeals.
They have not given me word on my first appeal. Typical of Brandeis they are drawing out this process over two months so that no one is here on campus and I have no choice of even applying to Brandeis since I am a TYP student.
After my meeting, I went to the computer lounge to check my email then at the advise of someone, I went to see the Students Crossing Boundaries Art exhibit. The delegates had been to my homeland and I just wanted to take a look.
As I was leaving Maggie Bach and Dean Rick Sawyer were looking out of the window and were pointing fingers at me. Maggie came up to me and said that she knew I checked my email. I was threatened with arrest. They know where I am every time I check my email. I tried to talk to Maggie about how I felt mistreated.
The last time I came to speak to Dean Sawyer. I had to wait two hours before he called the police to escort me out of campus.
Yesterday after being dismissed by Maggie I walked outside and got into the Waltham shuttle to get out of here as fast as I could. The police came up to the Waltham shuttle with their sirens on. Two cop cars surrounding it.
So this is my life. I came from refugee camp in Palestine . I was shot in a crossfire when I was 14. So, I came to Brandeis because I thought, in this place of social justice, I may find myself again. I’m afraid that I’m more lost and homeless than ever.
Sincerely,
Mamoon Darwish
