2008 Woodie Awards
ONE WAY OR ANOTHER: Students Stand for Something
Brian Dean
Issue date: 9/28/05 Section: Opinion
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Student activists are alive and well in the United States.
The 1960s set the bar quite high for action-oriented young people with social consciences. And though activism in the ensuing decades may have experienced a slump, the new millennium is proving to be an age of renewed activity. Perhaps the most significant subjects stimulating young activists today are the policies of the Bush administration - specifically the war in Iraq.
On the night of Nov. 4, 2004, 85 students opposed to the war briefly occupied Boulder High School before peacefully leaving the next morning. The Colorado students, members of the campus organization "Student Worker," coordinated the protest as a means of getting adults to pay attention to their opinions.
Though their action was brief, they succeeded in one of the main goals of activism: to get attention and create awareness. The students received a visit from their congressman Mark Udall, who met with the protesters at school for about one hour after their occupation ended.
One week later at the same school student members of the band "Coalition of the Willing" were investigated by the Secret Service for allegedly threatening to kill the President. Their only crime, however, was great taste in music. The band was rehearsing Bob Dylan's "Masters of War" for a school talent show and were overheard by some adults and other students who assumed the lyrics "...And I hope that you die and your death will come soon..." were altered in order to relate specifically to Bush. Despite the controversy, the students were allowed to perform.
Creating resources for other students to utilize is yet another way young people are becoming active. One such resource, www.campusactivism.org, provides simple instructions for becoming a student activist and allows visitors to publicize their own activist groups and events. The site lists various current campaigns ranging from a nationwide push for affordable textbooks to freeing the Panchen Lama, one of Tibet's most important religious figures.
The 1960s set the bar quite high for action-oriented young people with social consciences. And though activism in the ensuing decades may have experienced a slump, the new millennium is proving to be an age of renewed activity. Perhaps the most significant subjects stimulating young activists today are the policies of the Bush administration - specifically the war in Iraq.
On the night of Nov. 4, 2004, 85 students opposed to the war briefly occupied Boulder High School before peacefully leaving the next morning. The Colorado students, members of the campus organization "Student Worker," coordinated the protest as a means of getting adults to pay attention to their opinions.
Though their action was brief, they succeeded in one of the main goals of activism: to get attention and create awareness. The students received a visit from their congressman Mark Udall, who met with the protesters at school for about one hour after their occupation ended.
One week later at the same school student members of the band "Coalition of the Willing" were investigated by the Secret Service for allegedly threatening to kill the President. Their only crime, however, was great taste in music. The band was rehearsing Bob Dylan's "Masters of War" for a school talent show and were overheard by some adults and other students who assumed the lyrics "...And I hope that you die and your death will come soon..." were altered in order to relate specifically to Bush. Despite the controversy, the students were allowed to perform.
Creating resources for other students to utilize is yet another way young people are becoming active. One such resource, www.campusactivism.org, provides simple instructions for becoming a student activist and allows visitors to publicize their own activist groups and events. The site lists various current campaigns ranging from a nationwide push for affordable textbooks to freeing the Panchen Lama, one of Tibet's most important religious figures.
