A top Ohio University administrator released a statement Thursday evening announcing Caitlyn McDaniel, vice president of OU Student Senate, and Jarrad Gold, president of Alpha Pi Epsilon, a Jewish fraternity.
A top Ohio University administrator released a statement Thursday evening announcing Caitlyn McDaniel, vice president of OU Student Senate, and Jarrad Gold, president of Alpha Pi Epsilon, a Jewish fraternity, met a day after four students were arrested at a senate meeting.
Ryan Lombardi, vice president for Student Affairs, sent the statement to The Post at around 6:30 p.m. on Thursday on behalf of McDaniel and Gold.
"It was a productive and healthy conversation that has led to a mutual interest in finding a positive and constructive path forward," McDaniel and Gold said in the statement. "We want to honor everyone’s right to speak while also creating a “pro-peace” atmosphere."
Follow @ThePostCampus for more student senate news.
The statement made no mention of embattled Senate President Megan Marzec. It encouraged students to gather at Thursday evening's Interfaith Peace Walk at 7 p.m. at the Church of the Good Shepherd at the top of Morton Hill.
The statement comes after four OU students were arrested at last night's senate meeting while speaking against Marzec. Becky Sebo, president of Bobcats for Israel, a pro-Israel advocacy group, and three other members of the group were escorted from the meeting and arrested by the OU Police Department.
The four were calling for Marzec's resignation after she poured a bucket of fake blood over her head last week to protest "atrocities" committed against Palestinians by Israelis. She urged students and others to support her call for OU to join the boycotts, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement.
The four pled not guilty to a fourth degree misdemeanor for disrupting a lawful meeting in Athens City Municipal Court Thursday morning.
McDaniel ran with Marzec on the Restart ticket last spring and has supported her throughout the week-long controversy that has drawn international attention, outrage from all sides and death threats directed at Marzec.
"I think a successful democracy has any sort of divide," McDaniel said of the situation last week. "I encourage respectful dialogue, even sometimes when it is in disagreement."
In full, the statement from McDaniel and Gold reads:
"This afternoon, Caitlyn McDaniel from Student Senate and Jarrad Gold, President of Alpha Epsilon Pi, came together to discuss the recent events that have occurred at Ohio University. It was a productive and healthy conversation that has led to a mutual interest in finding a positive and constructive path forward. As a first step, we encourage all students to join us at the Interfaith Peace Walk tonight at 7 p.m., which begins at the Church of the Good Shepherd at the top of Morton Hill. In the coming days we will continue our conversation in an effort to promote healing, create a supportive climate, and foster a safe space on campus. We want to honor everyone’s right to speak while also creating a 'pro-peace' atmosphere."
Click here for video from last night's senate meeting.
@WillDrabold
dd195710@ohio.edu
