UT Austin students demand academic freedom
Austin, TX – On February 26, at 5 p.m., around 80 students, faculty and university affiliates gathered at the South Lawn of the University of Texas at Austin to protest the recent announcement of the elimination of the departments of Mexican-American and Latino Studies, African and African Diaspora Studies, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, and American Studies. The departments will lose departmental status and be consolidated into a new department of Social and Cultural Analysis.
The protest was organized by the Austin Students for a Democratic Society (SDS). They demanded a stop to this elimination and more transparency when it comes to major changes to the university.
Sofie Gomez, a member of Austin SDS, began the protest, stating, “Women like Bell Hooks fought and challenged academic settings like this. Fought for visibility. Fought to be put in our place. And she is being taught in these courses! They don’t want us to sharpen our minds with this wisdom. They don’t want queer people to be visible in academic settings!”
After a series of chants, students led the protest into a march around campus. They stopped at the Dorothy L. Gebauer Building, where the office of the College of Liberal Arts is located, to continue chants.
Dr. Karma Chavez, department chair of Mexican-American and Latino Studies, said, “This is an unprecedented time, where [University of Texas President Jim Davis] can make these decisions, without consulting any of the department heads, and decline public comment.” She highlighted the difficulty faculty have had in communicating with upper administration and the need for students to advocate for these departments to stay.
Mia Reballosa, a member of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization stated, “The only way we can win a better future is to continue to fight. Continue to make our voices heard because there is no other solution. These departments were won through long term, protracted advocacy from students and faculty, so we must continue to defend them. We have to continue to voice our demands. The only way we can win is to fight back, to organize, and be persistent.”
The students then marched to Gregory Plaza and finished off the protest with a series of chants such as, “We don’t want consolidation! We demand representation! We don’t want elimination! Hands off our education!”