I was a Russian Studies Major in college. It involved the study of Russian language, literature and culture, as well as the Soviet State. Among other things, I studied in Moscow. It was an academic endeavor, not political activism.
That was old school “ethnic” studies. New school ethnic studies is social justice warfare.
Student’s at San Francisco State University’s College of Ethnic Studies are upset that there might be some programming cuts as a result of overall budget problems. And true to their curriculum, they took up protest.
Golden Gate Express reports on a meeting hosted by SFSU President Leslie E. Wong, Potential Cuts Loom for Ethnic Studies:
Within an hour, the courtyard in front of Ethnic Studies was flooded with students, faculty and other members of the community, many wearing black with red accessories in solidarity with the potential faculty strike in April. Peppered among the sea of black and red were white signs and banners with messages of unity….“Ethnic Studies is the reason that I’m still in school,” said Black Student Union Vice President Hanna Wodaje. “It’s the reason why I’m able to graduate, and it’s the reason why I’ve decided to pursue my education and take it seriously, when in other classes I felt ignored and silenced and marginalized.”“My education taught me how to be a leader, how to be a father, how to be (a part) of the community,” said Latina/Latino studies major Oscar Peña.The crowd broke out into chants led by Cardenas and Peña, who raised their fists in the air and shouted, “What do we want?” The enthusiastic group thundered back, “Education!”In the final minutes leading up to the march to the conference center, students hung signs with messages like, “Education is a human right,” from their necks, linked arms and formed a wall blocking the path from other students, who were looking at the protest with mixed curiosity and annoyance.
Emotions were raw, according to the Golden Gate Express, and involved the inevitable hijacking of a local issue by Palestinian activists (emphasis added):
With only minutes left before the meeting ended, protest organizers urged the crowd outside to link arms and form a human path through which Wong and the other administrators were forced to walk. As the stone-faced Wong exited the meeting, the line of students chanted, “Shame on you!” From there, the protesters marched through campus, chanting, cheering and waving to onlookers before reaching Malcolm X Plaza for a follow-up demonstration.The crowd overwhelmed the quad, raising their fists and crying out messages of encouragement to the dozens of organizers who flocked to the stage. Among the statements made by those who took the stage were messages of solidarity with Palestine, remembrance of various victims of police brutality and a rejection of the colonialist and imperialist attitudes they accused the administration of having. Most important was the steadfast commitment to the College of Ethnic Studies, no matter the cost.“We have nothing to lose but our chains!” hundreds of students chanted. “We have nothing to lose but our chains!”
Students United will never be divided
Posted by Andrew Jolivette on Thursday, February 25, 2016
America’s most famous “undocumented immigrant” joined in to support the protests:
The budget cuts are at least a year away, the University later announced.
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