Penn campus police call university president's 'die-in' display 'slap in the face'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In this Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2014 photo provided by The Daily Pennsylvanian, University of Pennsylvania President Amy Gutmann joins protesters at a holiday party at her home in Philadelphia, lying on the floor for a symbolic 4½ minute "die-in" to protest the police-shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. The head of the campus police union said officers were outraged by Gutmann's display after student protesters interrupted her holiday party. A Penn vice president said Guttmann was showing solidarity with students, not attacking officers. (AP Photo/The Daily Pennsylvanian, Luke Chen) (The Associated Press)
The University of Pennsylvania's president is under fire from campus police for participating in a student "die-in" protest.
The head of the campus police union says officers were outraged by Amy Gutmann's display Tuesday after student protesters interrupted her holiday party.
Gutmann joined students in lying on the floor for a symbolic 4 1/2 minutes as they protested the police-shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Union chief Eric Rohrback says in Friday's Philadelphia Inquirer (http://bit.ly/1DlTAkR ) that Gutmann gave in to the "uninformed mob mentality." He called it a "slap in the face."
A Penn vice president says Guttmann was showing solidarity with students, not attacking officers.
Penn State President Eric Barron gave a similar explanation amid calls that he apologize for making the "hands up" gesture during a protest.