The Black Lives Matter movement is one of several forces now powering a new wave of student … [+]
The year 2020 is fast shaping up to be the year where college student protests once again became a national movement. Not since the 1960s, when massive student protests – loosely organized into what was called the New Left – emerged in support of multiple causes, have we seen such a ground swell of activism among America’s youth.
Much like in the ‘60s, today’s protests are animated by anger over several perceived wrongs. The parallels between then and now are striking.
In the ‘60s, hundreds of thousands of college students came together to protect free speech and to voice protest about a trio of issues – the Vietnam war, racial injustice with associated widespread poverty, and decisions by college administrators themselves involving curriculum and institutional investments.
Today, the targets include police brutality against people of color, campus buildings and other legacies regarded as symbols of institutional racism, federal actions taken against international students, and growing outrage over tuition at colleges that aren’t offering in-person instruction or other valued campus experiences.
Just like in the ‘60s, today’s protests run the gamut from peaceful marches and silent vigils to occasional outbursts of rioting and property destruction. Both eras have seen the National Guard called in to quell demonstrations, and in both instances, aggressive over-reactions by elected officials have served to aggravate situations that called for more measured reactions.
Regardless of whether most college students return to campus this fall or pursue their studies off campus through remote learning, the following five factors will fuel continuing demonstrations and protests, potentially making 2020 the year that student activism reaches historic levels.
The Black Lives Matter Movement Enjoys Widespread Support
Estimates are that somewhere between 15 million to 26 million people in the United States have participated in demonstrations over the killing of George Floyd and other Black Americans in recent weeks. If accurate, that would make the recent protests the largest movement in the country’s history.
Much of that activity has been inspired by Black Lives Matter (BLM), which although around since 2013 has only recently seen a large increase in public support, with the majority of Americans now sympathetic to its cause. College athletes have picked up the BLM mantle and taken the lead in speaking out against racial injustice and police brutality. In the wake of the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Rayshard Brooks and Ahmaud Arbery, their protests send an initial signal that an energized student movement is forming. Following the athletes’ lead, more college students will get off the sidelines and join the action.
Campuses Contain Many Symbols Of Bigotry
College students looking for targets at which to aim their anger over racial injustices can usually find convenient examples right on campus. Whether it’s Princeton removing Woodrow Wilson’s name from its public policy school and Wilson College, Washington and Lee faculty voting to drop Lee from the university’s name, or tearing down Confederate symbols at the University of Mississippi, colleges and universities are showing a readiness – even an eagerness – to distance themselves from any relics of a racist past.
Students know there will be immediate institutional sensitivity to anything that suggests a college honors or protects individuals who’ve ever shown racist behavior no matter how long ago and no matter whether they also might have admirable achievements. College leaders will be quick to respond to demands that offending names be erased, murals removed, statues taken down and songs no longer sung. And students know it, so look for them to launch more of these kinds of demands.
The Federal Government Will Continue To Pursue Foolish Policies.
Donald Trump is deeply unpopular with college students and is overwhelmingly opposed by 18-to-24-year olds. U.S. politics have become more polarized, and college students have been drawn into the fray on topics like climate change, gun control, and immigration policies. This fact has not been lost on conservative lawmakers, who have gone so far in some states as to jimmy the dates of special elections or limit early voting on campuses.
Although there are a host of examples of Trump administration policies worthy of student protest, exhibit number one will surely be the policy announced this week by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that would make international students enrolled exclusively in online courses subject to deportation. Not only has there been an immediate outcry from international students and their advocates over this cruel and arbitrary policy, higher education organizations, college administrators, and business leaders have all roundly condemned it.
ICE’s hasty and unworkable proposal provides a perfect, timely quarry for student protestors. It’s a three-in-one win. American students can show solidarity with their international peers; they’ll have a sympathetic audience among college faculty and leaders; and most Americans are likely to side with them on it as well. Listen for a justifiably full-throated roar on this one, as courts decide whether to block ICE’s policy.
College Pandemic Policies Are Energizing Student Opposition
As colleges struggle with how to re-open safely in the fall, still in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, students are on high alert about tuition and other policies they see as unfair.
OneClass just polled 13,606 U.S students at 101 major universities and colleges in the class of 2023/2024 and asked them one question: “Going online has provided new challenges to our schools and its student body. If our school goes completely online in the fall, should tuition change?” An overwhelming majority – 93% – said yes, it should be reduced. And yet we are learning that many schools intending to offer only remote instruction in the fall are planning to not lower their tuition a cent. Harvard beware.
If colleges want to unite students – conservative and progressive, Black and White, young and old – in noisy opposition, do the following: 1) charge the same tuition regardless of the mode of instruction, 2) don’t rebate room and board charges if students are suddenly mandated to again leave campus because of the virus, and 3) require students to sign a waiver that releases the institution of any liability should a student contact Covid-19 on campus.
Social Media Will Pump Up The Volume
Protesting in general is becoming more acceptable in America, in part because of the influence of social media in stirring the passions of partisans and, in part, because of its success in quickly summoning people into action. As the country becomes more accustomed to partisanship and adversarial actions, protesting becomes more of a normal pursuit. According to a poll from The Washington Post and the Kaiser Family Foundation, one in five Americans reported they had participated in a protest since the start of the Trump administration.
If there is any group adroit at using social media to advance their purposes, it’s college students. Expects their calls for protest to multiply, to become louder, and to recruit the throngs of supporters that harken back to those memorable days in 1968. And expect them to vote in unprecedented numbers this November.
