Tulane University is having its graduation ceremony this weekend, but it’s less than a joyous occasion for a few graduating seniors.

They’ve recently been reprimanded by the university, and two of them have been threatened with arrest if they ever dare step foot on the campus again.

Their heinous crime?

They participated in a nonviolent protest on April 23 in support of striking cafeteria workers at the university, who are employed by the Sodexo Corporation.

Sodexo pays its workers peanuts, has an inadequate health care package, and makes its employees ask permission before they can use the restrooms, the student activists say.

(Led by the SEIU, labor campaigns against Sodexo have been going on at campuses around the country. See seiu.org. Sodexo says SEIU is engaging in a smear campaign.)

Four leaders of the Tulane student protests were charged with code of conduct violations by the school’s office of student affairs. According to a press release from the students, they were charged with “intimidation or harassment, abusive or disorderly conduct, interference with the freedom of expression of others, interference with the educational process or other university-sponsored activities, and failure to comply with university officials acting in the performance of their duties.”

One of the students, Brian Ford, says the only charge that the university ultimately pinned on them was the latter one.

“We were kind of shocked and surprised,” says Ford, a leader of Tulane University Solidarity Committee. “We couldn’t believe that the administration would take this response to a very nonviolent and orderly demonstration. They had to make argument that clapping and cheering was intimidation, that encouraging students not to use the dining facilities was interfering with school-sponsored affairs or the education process. They basically took the position that part of the educational process was eating lunch.”

The other three students are Lauren Elliott, Hunter Deely, and Kevin Henry.

Ford and Elliott, who are graduating on May 16, were given a written warning that said: “Should you return to campus after this date and participate in any unauthorized protests and or/rallies, you may be … arrested for criminal trespass.”

Mike Strecker, director of public relations for Tulane, released the following statement to The Progressive:

“Tulane University supports the right of its students to protest, as long as those protests are peaceful and do not disrupt the operations or academic life of the university. The April 23 protest resulted in various complaints from faculty, students and staff regarding verbal abuse, intimidation and harassment by the protestors, who employed drums, megaphones and other boisterous tactics. This protest, which was initially staged outside of the university’s residence halls, came at a particularly critical time for our students as final exams approached.”

Ford says the disciplinary action was designed to “send a strong message to other students about what will happen if you speak out.”

Matthew Rothschild is the editor of The Progressive magazine.