Sam Alex occupation ends after almost 3 weeks

On Monday evening, the group of students from the University of Manchester who occupied the Samuel Alexander Building, ended their occupation.

Their decision was announced at the FCK UOM protest on Monday, due to a “refusal to acknowledge their demands” and “bullying” by the university.

The group who were mostly first year students, was composed of a mix of protesters from UoM RentStrike, Cops off Campus and NancyOut.

The occupation lasted 18 days, which they claim was “the longest occupation in Manchester’s history since the 1970s.”

According to the group, during the period of their occupation the university has “stalked” their social media accounts and they have been “threatened with legal and disciplinary action”.

The occupiers told The Manchester Tab: “It’s become clear to us that the university isn’t listening and continuing our occupation won’t change that.

“With a heavy heart, we are leaving the occupation so that we can fight another day.

“Due to the University’s lack of constructive response we have to escalate with new radical tactics. This is only the beginning”.

In response, university representatives stated: “The students who have been occupying the Samuel Alexander Building have now left. With a full and welcome return to in-person teaching from 17 May, we will now begin the process of cleaning the building and ensuring it is COVID secure again for the use of staff and students.”

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