Williams Students Reportedly Harassed on Main Street
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — Williamstown Police and Williams College security are investigating two reports of students being harassed on Main Street over the weekend.
In a letter to the campus community on Tuesday morning, Campus Safety Services Director Jeff Palmer detailed separate incidents where students were harassed on Route 2.
In one case, "a white 4-door pickup truck towing a motorcycle trailer that shouted and made gestures of a derogatory and explicit nature and shouted racial slurs at students who were waiting at the bus stop," Palmer wrote.
Another time students reported to CSS that, "a black truck … accelerated through the crosswalk while students were beginning to cross."
Palmer characterized the latter incident as "intimidation."
Palmer encouraged anyone with information about either incident to report it either to his office at 413-597-4444 or the WPD at 413-458-5733.
"While it may be difficult to do in the moment, if you witness, or are the target of one of these incidents, please try to identify the vehicle (make, model, color, license plate, license plate state, etc.) and provide that information to CSS," Palmer wrote.
Police Chief Michael Ziemba said Tuesday morning that there is no closed-circuit television footage available for the areas where the incidents occurred.
Palmer's email directed members of the community to support services available from the Williams Chaplains’ Office, Davis Center and dean of the college’s Integrative Wellbeing Services.
"We want to thank the students who contacted us about the incident[s] and to remind everyone that actions like these have no place here," Palmer wrote. "Please take care of yourselves and each other."
Tags: harassment, Williams College,
