An amendment has been added to the Campus Access Policy, Section 32A, whereby the University of Sydney executive branch may select titles deemed ‘inflammatory’ from across the University of Sydney’s library acquisitions, when said titles are judged to contain content inciting protest or violence, and dispose of these materials in whatever manner it wishes.
This has resulted in the selection of 1,194 items across the eleven libraries on the Camperdown/Darlington campus to be retrieved for removal from the library systems and preparation for disposal. The selected method of disposal by the university senate is incineration, followed by interment of the remains on university grounds. The selected site is the Sunken Lawns, which has been chosen in order to raise its height to that of the surrounding lawns. Barbecues and other social events are prohibited during the interment process and for the following three months, so that the grass may regrow.
STUDENTS DISCOVERED DIGGING UP SUNKEN LAWNS
On March 2nd, 2025, a group of students, suspected to be editors from an unspecified University of Sydney-based publication, were discovered at the Sunken Lawns at quarter past three in the morning.
It is alleged that the students were found holding shovels and forks, and that they were surrounded by a large mound of dirt which they had allegedly displaced using aforementioned tools.
The students were taken by university authorities for further questioning. Their identities have not yet been publicly announced.
When asked for comment, a University of Sydney spokesperson said that “The students may have been attempting to retrieve the remains of books from the Sunken Lawn, but this is considered an illegal activity and they will face appropriate consequences for their actions.”
A witness came forth claiming that one of the students was wearing a lime-green feather boa at the time of discovery. When asked why the witness was present on campus in the early hours of the morning, the individual declined to comment.
The current whereabouts of the students are uncertain as none of them have been seen in public since the alleged incident.
A snap rally was held on March 3rd outside Fisher Library to protest against their disappearance, however this was swiftly disbanded by campus security. A rally organiser said that “They won’t shut us up, and they can’t keep restricting student freedoms. We will continue organising to resist this tyrannical behaviour.”
A painted banner stating ‘RELEASE THE EDITORS’ was found on the Law Library steps.
University of Sydney gardeners have disclosed that the ashes of incinerated library books have been displaced due to the alleged actions of the students.
Interview transcript #3289, 9:38:37 3/2/2025
UNIVERSITY OFFICIAL: Do you consent to this interview being recorded?
[REDACTED #1]: Ooh, that’s a tough question. Do I get a lollipop if I say yes?
UO: No. Please answer the question with ‘yes’ or ‘no’.
[R]: Yeah, sure, if it floats your boat.
UO: Now, what were you doing at 3:14am on the 2nd of February?
[R]: Ketamine?
UO: What were the reasons for your being at the Sunken Lawns at 3:14 in the morning?
[R]: Oh, that. You guys need to be more specific with your questions. I can give you tips if you want to improve your interview work. And maybe your brows too…
UO: If you keep deflecting, you risk incurring a financial penalty.
[R]: Fine! Gosh, you try to be helpful… Alright, I was with the girls, we were at the Sunken Lawns. Girls’ night out! You know how it is.
UO: No, I don’t. What were you doing at the Sunken Lawns?
[R]: That’s hard to say, my memory is a little patchy…
UO: You were found with shovels and garden forks.
[R]: Oh, those. Yeah, I’m not too good with shovels, it’s bad for my nails. I was more there for moral support.
Interview transcript #3290, 9:52:23 3/2/2025
UNIVERSITY OFFICIAL: Do you consent to this interview being recorded?
[REDACTED #2]: Yes.
UO: What were you doing the morning of February 2nd?
[R]: Exercising our legal rights to be on campus at night time. Last I checked, it’s not a crime.
UO: That may be the case, however digging up the Sunken Lawns is a criminal act.
[R]: Under which law?
UO: Damaging private property is prohibited.
[R]: And burning library books isn’t?
UO: Those library books are possessions of the University, so no. Back to my question –
[R]: Aren’t they considered public materials? They are – or were – publicly accessible five days a week, and students were given unlimited access. Aren’t you worried that destroying valuable books counts as censorship?
UO: This is irrelevant.
[R]: If I were you, I’d be lawyering up.
UO: We have a legal team.
[R]: And how much do you pay them? I’d want a lot if it was my job to get you out of a sticky situation like this.
UO: This isn’t a ‘sticky situation.’
[R]: I dunno, arresting students after you’ve burned a thousand library books looks like pretty bad optics to me. Even Murdoch would put that on the front page.
Ghost of Abercrombie @eenymeenymineymoe – 1h
next they’ll be outlawing students walking on eastern ave lol
Moni @monimopoly – 38min
oh no there goes my sunday morning plans 🙁
OrangeFlag @orangeflag51 – 29min
This is a despicable act and an affront to the freedom of students. Protect student rights!! Buy a copy of Orange Flag to assert your resistance against this draconian regime.
Robbie Walliamns @betaman – 21min
figures that arts students would pull this shit while the rest of us have actual exams to deal w
Minnie @leapfrog127 – 16min
Hey everyone! I started a GoFundMe to help gather funds to free the editors of @****_****. Click the link in bio to chip in! Every $$ counts!!
Toby @tobiasthethird – 12min
This is all the ALP’s fault.
Justice4UniMelb @notliberalstudent47 – 8min
i miss the prongs 😔
University of Sydney Archives
List of materials identified as inflammatory, February 2025 [incomplete]
- Hannah Arendt, Eichmann in Jerusalem
- Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man
- Martin Luther King, Why We Can’t Wait
- Robert Sewell & Alan Woods, In Defence of Lenin
- Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
- James Baldwin, Another Country
- William Powell, The Anarchist Cookbook
- Jane Austen, Mansfield Park
- Samuel Richardson, Clarissa
- Mary Prince, The History of Mary Prince
