Category: Student Movement

Salt Lake City, UT — On Wednesday, June 11, more than fifty students, faculty, and community members attended a meeting to discuss the fate of campus space used mainly by African-American, Chicano, Pacific Islander, Asian American, American Indian, and international students. Addressed by Interim Salt Lake Community College (SLCC) President Deneece Huftalin, students expressed alarm that the Multicultural Initiatives Department and the related space in Student Engagement are being taken away. The Multicultural Initiatives Department offices surrounded a large open space where various nationalities meet to study, relax, and find community.

The President had met with students previously to announce she would not hire another administrator for the Multicultural Initiatives Department, and that she planned on dispersing members of the department around campus. She had said the decision was final. However, the President faced serious criticisms for this position and is now backtracking.

Angela Romero representing Utah House District 26 and graduate of a similar diversity program stated, “You need a multi-cultural director and I feel it’s critical that if you’re trying to be an inclusive campus you have someone who understands diverse communities. You need someone who can act as a voice for the students and who can raise those concerns. Students also need to know they have a safe space.”

Gregory Lucero of the Revolutionary Students Union raised additional doubts, “ We have the President trying to force gentrification on a multicultural center by turning the student space into a waiting room for academic advisors.” He added, “The president says she’s spreading the department around the campus to help serve more students, but we’ve heard this story before. It’s really divide and conquer.”

Shekinah Stanton of the Black Student Union pointed out that most of the diversity programs only focused on first year students with little programing for ongoing students. She pointed out the much lower graduation rates for oppressed nationality students stating, “SLCC needs to do better. It’s obvious when you look at the numbers. It is no where it needs to be, and where it could be.”

Jerri Harwell, an English professor, summed up what she saw as the real problem. “I feel a major problem is institutional racism. It is an uphill battle to fight it but we have to continue to fight it. So I could leave Utah but I choose to stay, because I want to make the community better, Salt Lake community better, and improve my little place in the world.”

Students, faculty, and the community members vowed to continue to fight for both the department and the space if President makes any moves to cut either of them.

Tallahassee, FL – On May 21, at a meeting of the Florida State University Presidential Search Advisory Committee, Tallahassee Dream Defenders spoke out against the nomination of Senator John Thrasher as the new Florida State University (FSU) president. Students from Tallahassee Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), FSU Progress Coalition and Graduate Assistants United joined them.

At the committee meeting a motion passed naming Florida Senator John Thrasher as the sole nominee of the presidential search. The committee’s vote of 15-9 in support of this controversial motion, despite the overwhelming opposition by students and faculty who all voted no, raises several red flags. The process for choosing the nominee is being criticized for its undemocratic nature. In addition, John Thrasher made many statements alluding to wanting the job, but failed to apply like other candidates. Thrasher is being given special treatment and students say it is because he is rich and politically powerful. They also say Thrasher is racist and anti-worker.

As reported previously by Fight Back!, John Thrasher has a history of opposing the interests of African American students in Tallahassee. Earlier this year, Thrasher proposed an amendment at the Florida State Capitol to split the FAMU-FSU engineering school, treating the historically Black college students at FAMU like second-class citizens. However, due to duplication laws, the proposed split faces legal issues. FSU’s Engineering College would be forced to relocate, similar to the displacement of FAMU’s law school, from Tallahassee to Orlando.

As the president of FSU Dream Defenders, Brian Marshall is concerned, “Thrasher has ignored the voices of students. For example, in his support of the engineering school split.”

There is also John Thrasher’s support for harsher sentencing policies that feed mass incarceration of African American, Latino and working class youth in the state of Florida. Thrasher accepts political contributions from private prison corporations like CCA and GEO Group. These companies take taxpayer dollars and are repeat human rights violators. Politicians like Thrasher vote to give them more contracts and money.

Thrasher’s record of criminalizing African American and Latino communities does not end here. Thrasher supported bringing racist Arizona-style immigration laws to Florida. With Florida students recently winning in-state tuition for undocumented students, will FSU be a safe place for the undocumented under Thrasher? Students are raising concerns that Thrasher will use his position as FSU President to perpetuate racist discrimination and national oppression against African Americans and Latinos in Florida.

As well, students and faculty question the motives of the hiring firm, R. William Funk and Associates. This is the same company responsible for the current Purdue University president Mitch Daniels, the reactionary former Governor of Indiana. Funk and Associates is currently under a non-competitive contract, meaning that Funk cannot pursue other work until this is settled. Members of the faculty claimed that William Funk is rushing the process in order to pursue more profitable jobs for other universities.

Students are upset with the lack of transparency in this search process. Dream Defenders and Students for a Democratic Society protested and spoke out during previous meetings of the Presidential Search Committee. In addition, members of FSU faculty are advocating for an academic, not a right-wing politician like Thrasher, to become the next FSU president. However it was not until May 21 that Thrasher was even confirmed as a nominee, while the voices of students and faculty are being completely ignored. Now the faculty union representing 1600 educators opposes the process and wants Funk and Associates replaced.

Jerry Funt, co-president of the FSU Progress Coalition, expressed that the students were prepared to resist John Thrasher. “The search committee, the search firm, the FSU Board of Trustees and John Thrasher all must take note; nothing that happens here will go unnoticed. We’ve been vocal, we’ve been consistent and we’ve been watching this process. Whoever the new president is, they will answer to us first and foremost; the decision as to who the president is should reflect that.”

Regina Joseph, vice-president of FSU Dream Defenders vows that if the Search Committee continues with its nomination, students will march against John Thrasher.

Minneapolis, MN – Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) at the University of Minnesota won a important victory this week, successfully defending itself from administrative sanctions aimed at SDS for its central role in organizing protests at Condoleezza Rice’s April 17 ‘distinguished lecturer’ speaking event.

SDS urged faculty and community groups to demand the university drop the charges, and after a barrage of phone calls, letters and emails, the administration was forced to do so.

Many of the charges leveled at SDS were alleged ‘violations’ of policies designed to silence free-speech on campus by outlawing the basic necessities of any large protest. As one example, the use of amplified sound on campus is only permissible within a narrow one-hour window on weekdays, and even then only with the appropriate permit, which can take over a month to pass through the university bureaucracy for approval. For going on a march at the end of a rally, protesters can be found in violation of moving from an approved protest area or of being otherwise disruptive to the campus environment. These policies are an attempt to chill student activism.

The charges brought against SDS for organizing a protest are outrageous, given that top university administration have consistently defended Rice’s scheduled speaking event, and $150,000 speaker fee, on the grounds of protecting her “free speech.”

Another important activist group on Minnesota’s campus, Whose Diversity?, is currently being targeted for similar repression. Whose Diversity? is accused of violations to the Student Code of Conduct for protesting university administrators at a public relations event that promoted an artificial image of ‘diversity’ at the University. Whose Diversity? demands substantive, not superficial, diversity, and for articulating this at a public event, ten organizers were charged with being “disruptive” and “failing to comply” with university officials. The punishment for speaking out against university administrators could range from a warning to expulsion and the revocation of degrees

Students for a Democratic Society at the University of Minnesota continues to stand with Whose Diversity? and recognizes their struggle as a struggle of all students for justice, equity and inclusion on campus. The collective efforts of student struggles on campus are united in fighting the repression of administration and recognize a common goal to defend the right to dissent on campus. It is in solidarity that SDS continues to struggle for justice with Whose Diversity? and calls upon the community to engage with and support the fight for equity and inclusion on campus. SDS is asking that its supporters, who were so vital in its successful fight against university repression, now give their full support to the Whose Diversity? organizers who are facing repression.

SDS has sent its thanks its faculty and community supporters who stood with it in fighting against administration repression. Matt Boynton, a University of Minnesota SDS member, said, “More than anything else, we want to recognize this as a major victory and to thank everyone who supported us. We would not have won without the support of faculty, staff and community members. We hope Whose Diversity? organizers will be cleared of their charges and we can all share a victory very soon.”

The SDS victory against repression on campus is a major one that will be celebrated as the group carries its work forward to the SDS National Convention, which is being held at the University of Minnesota next fall.

Tallahassee, FL – Students achieved a victory late last week when the Florida Senate passed tuition equity. On May Day, 2014, the Florida Senate passed House Bill 851 mandating tuition waivers for undocumented students at public universities. Presently, Florida’s undocumented students pay out-of-state tuition, three times the in-state tuition rate. After attending and graduating from Florida high schools, many are denied equal access to higher education by the out-of-state tuition rate.

Students rallied, prayed, and protested over the course of last week at the Florida Capitol, organized by Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and members of the Florida Immigrant Coalition. Passing the bill hit a roadblock when some Republicans refused to move it out of committee or bring it to a floor vote. Students quickly mobilized, despite studying for final exams. Education For All activists arrived outside the Senate Chambers to sit-in and protest demanding Senate President Don Gaetz and the bill’s sponsor, Senator Latvala, put the bill onto the floor. With the constant presence of student organizers and press, the Senators passed H.B. 851 with a vote of 26 to 13. Now it is only a matter of days before Governor Rick Scott signs the bill into law.

Students in Florida won this victory by organizing on their campuses, passing student government resolutions, meeting with university administrators and presidents to gain their public support, and rallying outside and speaking at university board meetings. Statewide organizing by immigrant rights and student groups built a broad movement that the politicians were forced to respond to. Many of the student groups work within the national Education For All campaign, which fights for tuition equity throughout the country.

“I’m happy to announce that tuition equity has officially passed in the Florida Senate!” said Colleen Baublitz of SDS at a May Day event in Gainesville. “I also want to emphasize that the struggle does not end here. Students in Florida should keep fighting locally to protect these tuition waivers, and students in other states should fight for tuition equity, financial aid for undocumented students, and their admission into universities in states where it is still prohibited. The campaign is not over until equality for all immigrants is achieved.”

Tallahassee, FL – Students prevented the proposed split of the Florida A&M University-Florida State University (FAMU-FSU) College of Engineering this 2014 legislative session. Student activists organized and protested at the Florida legislature to force Republican politicians to back off. FAMU is an historically Black university and African-American students view the proposed split as a racist attempt to create separate and unequal colleges.

The bad legislation went away when Florida Speaker of the House Will Weatherford introduced a compromise. It calls for funding a study into the viability of the joint engineering college. This then passes the buck to the Florida Board of Governors in March 2015. They have final decision on the future of the joint and historical partnership.

Florida State Senator John Thrasher, the campaign co-chair for Governor Rick Scott’s re-election campaign, originally proposed splitting the engineering college. Thrasher attempted to cover his tracks by claiming the discussion would not have taken place if he had not proposed a budget amendment to fund the split.

“Thrasher is a notorious anti-worker and anti-higher education bully, who this session, due to the FAMU and FSU students working together, didn’t get what he wanted,” said Michael Sampson, organizer with the Dream Defenders. “He can try and sum this up any way he wants but he lost this go around and those who wanted to prevent the FAMU-FSU School of Engineering from being split this year were successful.”

Thrasher is rumored to be a finalist for the FSU presidential search. Many view his proposal to split the FAMU-FSU School of Engineering as a power grab by elite FSU interests at the expense of FAMU. This is currently one of the few partnerships between a mostly white university and a historically Black university. Neither FAMU nor FSU administrative leadership were even notified of the possibility of a split of its engineering program before it happened. New FAMU President, Elora Mangum, said that FAMU by itself didn’t have the means to sustain its own engineering program at current rates of funding from the state legislature.

Florida State University is a predominantly white education institution that continues to grow, often at the expense of the neighboring African-American communities. This move by Thrasher to split away from a joint venture with the Florida A&M University was a move that angered many of Tallahassee’s African americans. Engineering students from the National Society of Black Engineers spoke out with Dream Defenders against the attempted injustice.

“I think that it was a great step,” said FSU Engineering student and former vice-president of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) Samuel Ichite. “It’s great to know that the logical step was taken as a result of different people stepping up and standing for what was right. It should never be left up to politicians to determine the fate of our education.”

Tallahassee Dream Defenders, working with organizations like NSBE and the FAMU Student Government Association and other FAMU student leaders, organized to prevent Thrasher’s power play from being successful. However, student activists know they have a long way to go to make sure the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering is protected in the future.

“This is a short-term win but we need to keep organizing over the summer and throughout next year to prevent them from attempting to split it again,” said Melanie Andrade, president of the FAMU chapter of Dream Defenders. “We need to make sure we are researching whatever they are proposing and targeting whoever needs to be targeted in order to make sure the FAMU-FSU School of Engineering stays the way it is.”

Tallahassee, FL – On the morning of April 23, over 20 students from Florida State University (FSU) and the historically Black college Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), gathered outside the state capitol building. Despite final exams, they joined together to speak out against the split of the joint FAMU-FSU Engineering School.

Engineering students from both colleges, as well as students of other majors, spoke out vigorously against the proposal. The students were angered by the lack of democracy in the process. Student voices were never once heard when administrators put the proposal through. Many students denounce the proposal as a ‘separate but equal’ policy that treats students from historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) as second-class students.

Brian Marshall, the campus president of FSU Dream Defenders, stated, “This proposal reeks of racism and sends a clear message that predominantly white institutions view themselves as superior over Black institutions.” Students chanted with passion, “Separate but equal is not for the people,” and, “FAMU or FSU, we believe in one goal, one E- school! One E-school! One E-School!” The Engineering School was a joint program run by both universities for 32 years. Reactionary Florida State Senator John Thrasher made the proposal to separate the two schools. John Thrasher is the campaign manager for Florida Governor Rick Scott and is vying for the spot as President of Florida State University. The split is being done under the guise of turning FSU into a Top 25 University.

Regina Joseph, FSU vice-president of Dream Defenders, stated, “FSU may be trying to be a Top 25 university, but it is clearly not concerned with being a Top 25 university in racial diversity and inclusiveness.”

Engineering students took time from their projects and called out the undemocratic move and stated unequivocally that the school would be best served if it stayed united. With only one week left to stop this racist proposal from coming to fruition, organizations like Dream Defenders and National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) are urgently working to stop the split. African-American students in Tallahassee are angered by this second-class treatment. Many students conclude there is an utter disregard from both Florida politicians and campus administrators. Student organizers vow to thrash racism wherever they see it.

Gainesville, FL – On April 21, Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) chapters from around the state of Florida gathered for an emergency rally at the State Capitol in Tallahassee. The event was organized in response to Senator Joe Negron’s blocking in the Appropriations Committee of SB1400, the bill that would allow undocumented students to pay in-state tuition at Florida universities. A small group of Republicans in the Senate is desperately attempting to prevent tuition equity legislation from being voted on, despite overwhelming support from immigrant communities, student activists and Florida’s universities. The majority of Florida voters support the bill and it has already passed comfortably in the house.

Over 20 students took part in the sit-in at Senate President Don Gaetz’s office and demanded to meet with him. Security guards prevented the protesters from entering the president’s office but students rallied outside instead, chanting, “What do we want? Tuition Equity! When do we want it? Now!” After 15 minutes Sen. Gaetz bowed to their pressure and met with a delegation from the group. In the meeting students asked Gaetz to guarantee that if the bill is brought up from the floor, that he would give it a fair chance to pass.

Chrisley Carpio of University of Florida SDS was part of the delegation. After the meeting she said, “Senator Gaetz told us that he would do everything in his power to prevent tuition equity from passing. What kind of sham democracy do we have in this state where a few racist politicians can obstruct the will of the people?”

The protest continued throughout the day and more students joined the sit-in. Zachary Schultz from Florida State University SDS told Fight Back! that students plan continue protesting until the end of the legislative session on May 2. He said, “There is still a chance for tuition equity to pass. We need to do everything we can to hold these politicians’ feet to fire.”

There are two ways that tuition equity can pass without going through Senator Negron’s Appropriations Committee. It can be attached to another bill or brought up from the floor by a two-thirds majority vote. In addition to the ongoing demonstration in the capitol, Students for a Democratic Society plans to hold call-ins targeting key senators as part of their national Education for All campaign. With less than 10 days remaining in the legislative session, the fight is on for tuition equity and SDS is leading the charge.