College activism has changed, includes fewer protests but more events
Activism has a dramatic history on college campuses.
The topic conjures up images of students with peace signs and flowers in their hair going toe-to-toe with police.
In the ‘70s, students across the U.S. took to the pavement to protest America’s involvement in the Vietnam War and the draft. Their protests spurred heated confrontations with police and helped change public perception of the war.
Ryan Tarinelli
Where did all that passion for activism go?
On the surface, it looks like college students today have become passive to the world around them, too consumed in petty apps and their social lives to care about current events. It’s an easy narrative to adopt, and it’s one many baby boomers have taken a liking to.
Yet, activism on college campuses didn’t go anywhere, it just changed. It morphed from public protests into tabling events and social media campaigns.
Although protests and rallies are few and far between, student activism at the University of Idaho is more energized than ever.
The Women’s Center routinely organizes outreach events, guest speakers, film screenings, slam poetry events and performances, such as the upcoming production of “Any One of Us: Words From Prison.”
The Sustainability Center hosts many tabling and workshop events throughout the year, such as Bike Fix and Green Lunches. The center also organizes the UIdeas Symposium, a weeklong event featuring various speakers on topics related to the environment.
Not to mention the work done by the Soil Stewards to promote their goal of sustainable farming.
ASUI has also become an activism force on campus. In January, ASUI began the It’s On Us campaign, aimed at bringing awareness to sexual assault. These campaigns may not be loud and grab the attention of every student, but they do have an impact and can help shift public perception on a critical issue.
Besides events, many college activism campaigns thrive on social media and rely on it to promote their message.
In large part, college activism has been institutionalized. These events are sponsored by and funded through UI. Some may argue this happened at the detriment to real activism. Perhaps on some level, but it also allows students to be more effective in spreading their message with the university’s resources behind them.
This new campus activism allows students to bring about social change on campus while adding to their professional skill set. Although emails from the Sustainability Center are sometimes redundant, this activism enhances the student experience and is a positive contribution to campus culture.
Not to say a good protest can’t still be productive and spread a message. There will always be campuses like UC Berkley that exercise their right to protest frequently.
But for UI, it seems a different type of activism is here to stay.
Not all students have to be involved with activism. It’s not everyone’s thing — understandable. But students should at least pay attention, and when they can, be a participant.
Getting involved is part of the college experience. It’s supposed to expose students to new ideas and challenge their beliefs on some level. Activism is a critical part in this process, and at UI, there is still plenty of passion to make a change.
Ryan Tarinelli can be reached at [email protected]