Tallahassee, FL – On Feb. 10, students at Florida State University (FSU) took turns hitting piñatas made in the image of 2016 Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump. The event was organized by Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), whose members stated concerns about Trump’s proposed policies, such as building a wall on the U.S. – Mexico border, banning Muslim immigrants from entering the U.S., as well as mass deportations of undocumented people.

“It’s important to protest Donald Trump because he represents the main voice of racism, sexism and xenophobia in the U.S. today,” said Zachary Schultz, one of the SDS members who organized the event, “He has become a rallying point for neo-Nazis and other white supremacists and we need to consider this a serious threat.”

Almost 100 students took part in the event, trying to break open the piñatas while blindfolded, as observers cheered them on. Attendees also discussed their views on Trump while waiting their turn.

“Donald Trump is very proudly bigoted, as are his followers,” said Betty Lee, one of the many students who attended the event, “their fearmongering is endangering the lives of oppressed people in the U.S. and across the world.”

In addition to opposing Trump, SDS intends to call attention to Joe Gruters, the head of Florida’s Donald Trump campaign, who resides on the finance committee of FSU’s governing body, the board of trustees.

“SDS condemns the presence of Joe Gruters on the board of trustees and demands for his immediate resignation,” said SDS member Regina Joseph. “There is a conflict of interest in him both supporting Donald Trump and preventing FSU from further discriminating against the groups targeted by Trump and his followers.”

The piñata bash was the first of several events that SDS intends to hold as part of their campaign to fight against racism on campus and end FSU’s exclusion of African American students. The next event will be at a Dump Trump rally that is scheduled for Feb. 16.

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