Tag Archives: students

Spartacus moments (solidarity)

Posted on November 21, 2016 by David S. Meyer

The signal moment in Stanley Kubrick’s (1960) Spartacus takes place on a hillside after the Roman legions finally defeat a slave rebellion led by Kirk Douglas. The victorious Roman general announces that the surviving rebels will all be welcomed back … Continue reading →

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Apocalypse not yet

Posted on November 17, 2016 by David S. Meyer

Demonstrations against president-elect Donald Trump continue in cities and on college campuses. (The image at right is from an anti-Trump walkout at Rutgers University.) Small groups continue to torment people who look like they belong to groups (blacks, Latinos, gays, … Continue reading →

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After the fall….what kind of protest follows?

Posted on November 9, 2016 by David S. Meyer

I wrote yesterday’s post about concession speeches when I assumed, having steeped myself in all the aggregators and prognosticators I could find, that Hillary Clinton was going to win, and that Donald Trump would face the dilemma of navigating the … Continue reading →

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Does the student campaign spread?

Posted on November 19, 2015 by David S. Meyer

Activists copy things that seem to work, but the recipe for success in one place doesn’t always translate elsewhere. Of course, students around the United States found inspiration and encouragement from the Missouri students’ successful blitz of their university president.  … Continue reading →

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The Mizzou moment: Student activism beyond Missouri

Posted on November 13, 2015 by David S. Meyer

When activists see a tactic that seems to be producing results, they’ll imitate it. Innovation spreads ideas that seem to work. The ousting of University of Missouri Timothy Wolfe signaled student activists across the country about new possibilities. We’ve seen … Continue reading →

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How student activists win: Update on APUSH in Colorado

Posted on November 12, 2015 by David S. Meyer

Remember when high school students walked out of the public schools in Jefferson County Colorado earlier this year? They were protesting a number of administrative and curricular changes underway that threatened their educations. (We discussed it here.) A newly elected … Continue reading →

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Organizing (debt) forgiveness; Occupy continues

Posted on June 11, 2015 by David S. Meyer

Occupy’s campaign against economic and political inequality continues, although you have to look a little bit below the headlines to see its efforts and influence. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan just announced that the Federal government would forgive student loans … Continue reading →

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Take the degree, leave the mattress.

Posted on May 21, 2015 by David S. Meyer

Emma Sulkowicz dragged her mattress across the Columbia University campus for the last time this week, when she participated in a Class Day graduation ceremony.  This day, several friends helped Sulkowicz carry the mattress across the stages, but mostly she’s … Continue reading →

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Patriotic conflict at UC-Irvine unflagging

Posted on March 13, 2015 by David S. Meyer

Amazingly, national interest in the flag conflict at the University of California, Irvine, where I teach, is unwavering.  More than a few people seem to think that there is political mileage in beating up on a few students who sponsored … Continue reading →

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Battles over history

Posted on February 27, 2015 by David S. Meyer

I don’t need to close my eyes to love America. Then again, I’m not a high school student and I never took an Advanced Placement course in American History (APUSH).  But I like the “education without limitation” sign above, from … Continue reading →

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