West Chester, PA – Hundreds of students protested Donald Trump, who was campaigning at West Chester University, April 25. Students started to gather for the demonstration well before 1:00 p.m., which was when the doors opened for the Trump rally. Students gathered on the quad to discuss protest and demonstration tactics from 9:00 a.m. until noon. Then, students rallied and protested against Trump’s message of racism, sexism and bigotry.
Stone Mountain, GA – More than 400 youth, students, and anti-racist activists protested a “white power” rally by 12 members of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) and Southern Heritage in Stone Mountain Park, Georgia on April 23. The anti-racist protesters marched into Stone Mountain Park chanting as they prepared to confront the police. They successfully closed down the park and forced the cancellation of the “white power” concert originally scheduled for that night.
Tampa, FL – Over 30 students protested to change the name of the C.W. “Bill” Young building at the University of South Florida on April 19. Young was a Florida senator who participated in the Johns Committee from 1962 to 1964. The Johns Committee conducted witch-hunts, initially targeting communists during McCarthy’s red scare. However by the time Young joined the Johns Committee in 1962, it was zeroing in on gay people, driving hundreds of professors and students out of Florida universities and the teaching profession across the state.
Lufkin, Texas – Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) at Angelina College held a rally and march as part of a national day of action. They marched demanding “Education for all!” on April 13.
Milwaukee, WI – On April 6, members and affiliates of immigrant rights activist group United We Dream held actions around the country to raise awareness of a significant issue. DACA+ (Deferred Action for Children Arrivals extension) and DAPA (Deferred Action for Parents of Americans) will return to the Supreme Court after a delay caused by Justice Scalia’s death in February. As the court date approaches, groups in Albuquerque, Milwaukee, and many other cities are holding actions, making noise and taking the streets in attempts to direct media attention toward the families affected by the measures.
Minneapolis, MN – University of Minnesota officials are investigating a suspected outbreak of the norovirus in Minneapolis campus residential halls, according to workers there. Boynton Heath Services, the medical provider for students at the University of Minnesota, provided a notice to students yesterday that warned of “reports of nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, in students at Frontier Hall,” a dormitory on campus.
Milwaukee, WI – The Marquette University student organization Youth Empowered in the Struggle (YES) hosted its first annual “Together We Dream” Gala, March 31. 200 people came together to celebrate and share the experiences of undocumented students and to raise money for the newly created Ignacio Ellacuria S.J. Dreamer Scholarship at the university.
Philadelphia, PA – CIA Director John Brennan came to the University of Pennsylvania, April 1, for a talk on “modern foreign policy issues, national security, and the future of the global fight against terrorism.” Firmly drawing the line against Brennan’s warmongering, a group of Philadelphia activists and organizers, led by the UPenn chapter of Students for Democratic Society (SDS), decided to disrupt his speech.
Tampa, FL – Over 30 students gathered for a vigil, March 29, in remembrance of the LGBTQIA+ people murdered by U.S. militarism. The event was held in response to the University of South Florida (USF) administration’s defense of LGBT-phobic and militaristic C.W. “Bill” Young. Young was a senator and member of the Johns Committee in Florida, which persecuted hundreds of LGBTQIA+ people across the Florida university system.