Updated: Oct. 7, 2024, 7:19 p.m.
Students question the necessity of the fencing surrounding University Yard more than five months after officials erected the barricades in response to the pro-Palestinian encampment that occupied the green space last spring.
After local police cleared the encampment in May, officials installed 8-feet-tall metal fences around U-Yard and Kogan Plaza that limited access to GW’s most popular gathering spaces. More than 35 students said after officials removed the fencing around Kogan over the summer, the fences that remain blocking off U-Yard during overnight hours — which resemble the ones installed at the Capitol after the Jan. 6 insurrection — are obsolete.
The U-Yard fence gates are open between 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., and the current fencing will remain for the first part of this semester until officials obtain new fencing that “aesthetically integrates” with the campus and can be deployed quickly around the space, according to the safety and security tab on GW’s “Strengthening Our Community” website, which launched in January due to the increased campus tensions since the onset of the latest war in Gaza.
Junior Adelina Hernandez said she used U-Yard for leisure before officials installed the fences, which left a “bad taste” in her mouth. Hernandez said prospective students choose GW because of its integration with the city, and the fences’ presence can make people feel “boxed in.” She added that she doesn’t believe the barricades will dissuade students from protesting in U-Yard.
“It shows the school’s apathy and inability to work with students,” Hernandez said. “It also shows their inability to correctly respond to student protests.”
First-year Alex Radt said they are “frustrated” as a wheelchair user because they cannot access the sidewalk by the fences. On the H Street side of U-Yard, the metal plates buttressing the fences protrude more than a foot into the sidewalk, reducing unobstructed sidewalk space. Radt said they reached out to officials in August regarding the blocked sidewalk but have not yet received a response.
“I just hope that if they do get these newer fences and they feel the need to put them up, that these fences are not blocking the sidewalk and are not an accessibility problem,” Radt said. “I really hope that they take wheelchair users into account because at the moment they are not.”
University spokesperson Julia Metjian said officials pushed the fence’s steel plates southward, away from the sidewalk and into U-Yard’s landscaping, to free up additional sidewalk space after receiving “concerns” about its width. Metjian said after officials received concerns about the fence’s gates not opening wide enough to accommodate wheelchair users, officials made “adjustments” to “fully” open the fence doors.
Metjian said officials hope to install new fencing “later into the fall semester” but did not specify a timeline or details on its characteristics.
“Ensuring accessibility for our entire community is a top University priority,” Metjian said in an email.
Philip Wirtz, a faculty senator and a professor of decision sciences and psychological and brain sciences, mentioned the fences’ accessibility issues during a Faculty Senate meeting Friday, adding that the barricades send an “unflattering” message from the University.
“They are a huge turnoff,” Wirtz said.
Vice President for Safety and Operations Baxter Goodly said in response that the sidewalk is now Americans with Disabilities Act accessible. He said new fences that are “much more pleasing” were scheduled to arrive this month but were delayed due to Hurricane Helene because the contractor for the fences is based in North Carolina.
“I think everyone in this room wants to get rid of the fences as soon as we can, but based on what we’re seeing and what we’re hearing, we think it’s prudent to maintain the ability to close off the University Yard,” Goodly said.
Junior Salmoncain Smith-Shomade — who serves on the Campus Safety Advisory Committee, which consists of students, staff, faculty and one community member — said officials “did what they thought was necessary” to protect students during the spring semester by erecting the fences.
Smith-Shomade said he wants to see more outreach and explanation from officials to community members about overall safety mechanisms.
“I’m confused because we haven’t received much communication about exactly why they were there,” Smith-Shomade said. “Of course, everyone can make assumptions, but exactly why they were there and why they’re still up remains a mystery.”
Junior Stephen Garvey said the fencing surrounding U-Yard is a “good idea” for the University’s security because it allows officials to have “control” over the communal area.
“The University needs to prioritize the safety of us, and by allowing for some type of fence or something, the situations where there would be risk of injury or harm would decrease,” Garvey said.
Sophomore Camila Vargas said the current fencing sends a message from officials to students that they are “meant to feel unsafe” by the encampment on campus.
“It made us feel like we were in a conflict zone,” Vargas said. “As if we were under siege, it was like, ‘Oh my God, what’s going on?'”
She said upon returning to campus for the school year, she was initially confused walking through U-Yard, experiencing difficulty finding the open gates and identifying the times the gates will close.
Since opening U-Yard during the day, officials have at times this fall prematurely closed the fences due to on-campus demonstrations or vigils.
“It’s very sad how much my opinion of GW administration changed after that whole situation because it just made me realize there’s just another institution that don’t genuinely care about what the people want or about protecting us,” Vargas said.
Morgan Fasolak, a first-year law student, said she understands officials’ goal of protecting U-Yard from “protest activity.” But she said the current fencing is “obtrusive” and that she’d prefer for the replacement fencing to be more visually appealing barriers that don’t block pedestrian paths.
“For us in the law school, we use this courtyard a lot, so it’s probably more obvious to us that it’s an open courtyard than people who would be walking by,” Fasolak said. “They’re not sure if they’re allowed to come in.”
Senior Linnea Kerber said the fences are “sad and jarring.” She said she understands why officials put up the fences at first but does not believe the barricades are necessary now.
“It’s disappointing because I love U-Yard,” Kerber said. “It’s one of my favorite spaces. I’ll go and just hang out there, play frisbee or study. I love the outdoor jazz orchestra concerts and stuff, so to feel like there’s a limit on that, it’s just kind of sad.”
Student Government Association Vice President Ethan Lynne said he is “not a fan” of the fences and understands the “mixed feelings” students may have about them. Lynne said he is committed to working with officials on “finding a way forward” and keeping students in the loop regarding their fences’ presence.
First-year Camila Herrera said the only time she has been in U-Yard was for the First Night x Org Fair and finds them “unnecessary.”
“I feel like you can’t aesthetically put in a fence without there being some reason behind it,” Herrera said. “I feel like putting a fence divides the campus a little more.”
Aidan Farrell, Elijah Edwards, Maggie Rhoads, Natalie Note and Thomas Kim contributed reporting.
This article was updated to correct the following:
The Hatchet incorrectly spelled Lynne’s name. We regret this error.
