Note that the opinions presented in the article below are not representative of Her Campus national or Her Campus Columbia in any way.
It was a cold winter evening, and the first day of the super snowstorm Nemo. Those who were (un)fortunate enough to have Friday evening classes may have heard the shouting voices that were muffled by the sounds of winds and snow pounding on the windows. Sure enough, these shouts were coming from students protesting for the Faculty House workers’ wages. The first thing that probably ran through your mind was wow, standing out in the middle of a blizzard for workers’ rights…that takes dedication. But as students at Columbia University, it should come as no surprise to find students advocating important causes, even in severe weather condition. Between the famous Columbia protests of 1968–and the more recent protests of just the last semester–Columbia University has activism and protests ingrained in its history. It fosters an environment where students can voice their concerns, creating a perfect climate for a thriving activist community.
But when are protests too much? When do placards on College Walk lose thier effectiveness? And, on the flip side, when is it worth it?
Some students admire the passion these protestors display for the causes that they are supporting. Others are a bit perplexed about the rationality behind these protests. Still others think that the regular protesting and activist culture at Columbia have made our campus hyper-politicized.
One student, who wished to remain anonymous, had her own opinions about the effectiveness of protests following conflicts between Israel and Palestine, stating “I feel that both the Israeli student groups and Palestinian student groups were entitled to their reactions. They were bringing awareness to the problems both countries faced. My issue with this was that at one point it felt like they were angrily shouting and trying to upstage one another.” Another anonymous student blatantly stated, “Many of these protests are directed at the wrong audience. What can a stressed out student do to affect the situations in these counties? Only the governments in Israel and Palestine can solve these problems.”
Weeks after this incident, the Columbia University Marching Band came under fire because of their posters promoting Orgo Night, a semi-annual event that is looked forward to by many students during the stressful finals week. The poster joked about the Gaza Strip, a sensitive issue, which offended many students. Columbia is situated in one of the most diverse and a liberal cities in the world and its students continually test the limits on free speech. About the incident, Sarah Stern CC’16 said that “I think people take things too far but don’t realize it until others get upset.”
Following this incident, students tried to protest Orgo Night. Many people, even those outside of the Columbia community, thought these protests were warranted. But there were some who felt that this joke was taken too seriously–and, perhaps, taken too seriously by the wrong people. Lucero Jorge, CC’16, noted, “The wrong group of people was protesting about it because it had nothing to do with them. There were some people who were affected by the Gaza Strip situation who weren’t even offended.” There were two sides to the Orgo Night debate, but this division is less obvious in respect to other on-campus protests. Most recently, Columbia Democrats protested an campus event called “Family in Modern Society”, a whole day affair featuring anti-gay marriage talks and others about the value of chastity in modern society. Although this event also had supporters, in general, Columbia’s overwhelmingly liberal community supported the CU Democrats and their right to protest, so long as they didn’t disrupt the event.
With a student body hailing from over 90 countries on 6 continents, it is inevitable to find students protesting concerning various parts of the world. Views on the many issues vary, but there’s one thing that remains the same: Columbia University is a school with students strongly devoted to creating justice through activism. So long as there is injustice in the world there will always be Columbia students drawing attention to it in the hopes that their voices can make a difference. But HC Columbia wants to know your take: Just how much is too much? Let us know in the comments below.