Three weeks ago, I attended my 20th alumni reunion at WashU. It was primarily held at Tisch Park, which is a new addition to campus and I think is very beautiful. Nearly a third of the girlfriends from the freshman floor were in attendance, and my wife, who is also an alumnus, was forced to think about how much of a community WashU really was to us. I left the event feeling more connected to the university than I have been for 20 years.
Things have changed since then. I have seen videos and images of police suppressing the rights of students, faculty and staff to peacefully protest on campus. Rather than use his influence to engage students in his ideas that animate this protest movement, Prime Minister Martin has chosen to attack and belittle the students. His actions seem more like those of a corporate executive battling internal dissent than the leader of a world-class educational institution.
During my time at the University of Washington, I participated in my fair share of protests. I was a student on 9/11 and helped organize protests against the War on Terror. Our target, as it is today, was the university's relationship with Boeing. I remember feeling very disappointed that my university, my community, was tied to these companies that profited from militarism. I read a history about how previous generations of students at the University of Washington protested the university's ties to war profiteers during the Vietnam protests. Although neither my generation nor the previous generation had complete success, we felt that we were allowed to challenge powerful boards and were not met with violence or recrimination. Ta.
While I was attending the alumni reception, I saw a protest outside Brookings and couldn't help but smile. I was proud to see the tradition continue.
We are aware that some of the criticism of the protests is aimed at “disruptive tactics” rather than the message of the protests. But part of what I learned while in college is that sometimes disruption is necessary, as students certainly do when faced with a power imbalance.
Another group I helped found at the university, the Student Worker Alliance, also engaged in subversive activities. I interrupted then Premier Mark Righton at multiple community events. I called on non-student community members to join us in marching across campus to demand that WashU use its greater influence to build a better St. Louis. Eventually, the group held a sit-in at the admissions office for more than two weeks. Although the Student Workers Alliance didn't win everything we set out to win, we did win more than $2 million in increased compensation for university workers. My work in this campaign, perhaps most importantly challenging the status quo, is one of my fondest memories from my college days.
When I graduated, I considered then-Prime Minister Wrighton to be my enemy. He refused many of my requests. But looking back, I have to admit that my analysis has changed. Wrighton allowed the university to be an environment where students could experiment with ideas and tactics on how to build a better world. We may have been combatants at times, but ultimately we were members of the same community, the same family.
I have used my learnings, successes and failures to build a successful career as a labor organizer and improve the lives of Missouri's working class. So, despite continuing disagreements with the university on several issues of public policy, I am finally proud to be an alumnus.
Given the current situation, I wonder if the students that President Martin is mocking and threatening will think the same over reunion weekend. So if they have experience, will they come?
