More than 60 students filed into Harvard Hall 104 yesterday afternoon to stand in silent protest over recent remarks made by Kenan Professor of Government Harvey C. Mansfield '53 that linked grade inflation at Harvard to the influx of black students in the 1970s.

Most of the protesters were members of the Black Students' Association (BSA), which orchestrated the sit-in for the 90 minutes of Mansfield's Government 1061: "The History of Modern Political Philosophy" class.

In his only acknowledgment of the sit-in, Mansfield prefaced his lecture by inviting comments from the protesters.

"If you have anything to say or protest, say it now because the lecture is on the topic of Machiavelli, not on anything [else] I've said," he said.

Mansfield's invitation was met by silence--BSA officers had repeatedly asked the protestors to be silent both to respect the learning process and to avoid being Ad-boarded for disrupting the classroom.

BSA President Aaliyah N. Williams '02 added that the power of silence should not be underestimated.

"Sometimes silence is more powerful than words," Williams said. "Our goal was to make a statement that we were aware of Mansfield's statements and that we wouldn't let them go unaddressed...and that's what we did."

Several students taking Mansfield's class said they were pleasantly surprised by the orderliness of the sit-in.