Tents, Frats and Leftist Spats
A round up of student protest news..
Protests and encampments in support of Palestine have continued on as many as 130 American college campuses. Student groups have mostly been demanding that universities divest from Israel. (BBC)
Protestors at Portland broke into the University library, leaving trash and graffiti. At University of California, Los Angeles, rival groups clashed beating each other with sticks and hurling objects. (Oregon Live, Hollywood Reporter)
Frat boys have hit the headlines, helping to clear away protestors’ tents at the University of Arizona. At the University of Mississippi, another bunch of fellas waved the American flag and sang the anthem. (Not the Bee, Louder with Crowder)
A number of reports have ridiculed students for making all sort of demands, saying they will die of starvation if universities won’t let them bring in “humanitarian aid” for the protestors. Students at Chicago University issued a long list of things they need to continue their sit-in, “ranging from first aid supplies to HIV tests and Plan B.” (The Hill, Daily Mail)
Comparisons have been made to students protest movements of the past, but it’s not clear how many students really know what they want, or are ready to take their lumps for their stance. While one young lady was mocked for posting a selfie “at the encampment”, most protestors are doing their best to keep their identities secret, wearing masks and hoods. Some students have been shocked at the idea that their actions might have consequences like a permanent record of their protest, which migh,t as one opinion put it, “interfere with them getting the high-paying jobs at Goldman Sachs, McKinsey and the like they feel entitled to.“ Not the Bee, New York Post)
On the outside, these protests appear to have unsettled the liberal elites. Perhaps an internecine split is being revealed as wealthy donors and also lawmakers grapple with the idea that kids fed a bunch of nonsense about colonisation, identity politics and socialism might apply that in real life. Conservative commentators like Mollie Hemingway and Auron McIntyre have urged red states and Republican governors not to interfere. Politico admitted that this unrest is unlikely to help President Biden’s election campaign. (Semafor, Auron McIntyre Show, Politico)
We are definitely in the upside-down: Civil rights activist Al Sharpton has asked a cable news panel how anyone who condemns the violence of January 6, 2021, can condone the ruckus currently taking place on college campuses. (Washington Times)
Yes, let’s do the meme..
