MUN Board of Regents Chair Glenn Barnes faces criticism from MUN Students for Palestine (MUN S4P) after he forwarded a pro-divestment email he received from an adult community member to their parent and said that he is “telling parents that I know just what their kids are doing,” and that the student protesters “need to grow up.”
On June 20th, MUN Students for Palestine launched a ‘click to email’ campaign with each member of the MUN Board of Regents as the intended recipients. A ‘click to email’ campaign is an online tool organizations use to demonstrate public support for a cause. When participants sign up for the campaign, a pre-written message gets sent from their personal email address to the emails of the individuals they intend to persuade. If they are successful, these campaigns can fill up the inboxes of the intended targets in a way that makes it difficult to ignore their message.
As part of their campaign for MUN to divest from companies with ties to Israel’s invasion of Gaza, MUN Students for Palestine was successful in receiving a disclosure of Memorial’s investment portfolio, which shows that Memorial funds three companies that appear on divestment lists provided by the group.
As financial decisions like investment policies are made by the Board of Regents, they directed their pro-divestment emails to its members leading up to their board meeting.
Board of Regents Chair Glenn Barnes’ response was “unprofessional and concerning”: MUN S4P
MUN Students for Palestine say that while some members of the Board replied to these emails in a “positive and encouraging” way, Board of Regents Chair Glenn Barnes’ response was “unprofessional and concerning.”
The ‘click to email’ campaign message sent by the adult community member reads:
“Dear Glenn Barnes, I stand with the MUN Students for Palestine. MUN’s direct investment of over 7 million dollars in weapons manufacturing companies implicated in the genocide in Gaza is unacceptable. The failure of the university to listen to the facts laid out by the United Nations, International Criminal Court, and all major Humanitarian organizations is hypocritical, inhumane and appalling of a post-secondary institution. You have neglected your responsibility to develop and adhere to effective policies to ensure ethical investing. We don’t have the time to wait when almost 15,000 children have been martyred in Gaza. We demand you call an emergency meeting and act now.”
In an email obtained by the Muse, Glenn Barnes wrote back, “Really! 90 so far. This is personally intrusive and insulting to a volunteer board!”
In an accompanying email, which he sent to the parent of an adult community member, he wrote:
“I and other regents have received over 100 of these. They are intrusive and insulting. I am telling parents that I know just what their kids are doing. Theres (sic) is not the only viewpoint but this group think (sic) they are correct and that MUN ought to be in lock step with them. They need to grow up. Glenn.”
According to MUN Students for Palestine, the “parent of [the] adult community member notified Mr. Barnes that his actions were inappropriate and if he had concerns he could address them to the individual who had initially sent him an email.”
In response to Barnes, MUN Students For Palestine says that “this message … shows a lack of understanding of these issues. … students are not only representing their opinions, we are advocating for the university to listen to experts in their own institution and in the international community.”
MUN Students for Palestine also references the Board of Regents code of conduct:
“We feel that if Mr. Barnes or anyone else in the Board of Regents is unable to uphold the code of conduct, including confidentiality or control their emotions and act professionally when held to account, then they should not be on the board.”
The code of conduct section on respect says, “members will recognize the diverse views, opinions, and experiences of Members and the University Community and look to build and support a culture free of harassment, discrimination, and intimidation.”
The section on confidentiality states, “Members are expected to respect the confidentiality of any materials provided as part of their duties as a Member of the Board.”
At the time of publishing, our request for comment from Glenn Barnes has received no response.