From Monday April 16 to
Friday April 20, Montclair
State University's
chapter of Students for a Democratic Society hosted a week-long occupation on
their Student Center Quad.
The setup began Sunday
evening as SDS members put up their first tents preparing themselves for a
entire week of activism to raise awareness of real issues that affect higher education: tuition hikes, student loan
debt, lack of state funding, lack of administrative transparency, student rights on campus etc.
 |
| Day 1 of the encampment |
The setup of the occupation
sparked the curiosity of the general public. Tents, signs, and banners were
prominently displayed on the quad as students, faculty, and staff workers came
up to the SDS table to receive free food, informational literature, button
pins, and student debt stickers (HELLO, MY NAME IS ALDO AND I AM $10,000 IN
DEBT). Students were also encouraged to call their state legislators to
advocate for two Tuition Cap bills
that are currently on the floor of the NJ State Assembly (A2464) and the NJ
State Senate (S1569).
As SDS and other students
camped out over night, the University Police Department (UPD) patrolled the
area every night before midnight. This
was due to the administration’s pathetic little attempt to restrict the ability
of the students to protest. Rules were imposed on the
occupation such as only being allowed to occupy half of the quad and not
allowing anyone to sleep inside tents. SDS and company slept outside of
the tents instead, a hilarious loophole that was continuously exposed. Thankfully, the warm
weather was on the side of activism.
Despite the restrictions on
Freedom of Speech, Occupy MSU received positive media coverage for its protest: (Click)
-SDS member Aldo Guerrero appeared on camera in News 12 New Jersey. Although it aired on TV, the footage is not readily available for online viewing.
-WMBC also showed up
-And finally, various student journalists and photographers came to observe as well.
 |
| Professor Samuels talking about MSU's Student Government |
Throughout the week,
teach-ins of various subjects were hosted by guest speakers. Here is a list of
some teach-ins that took place:
-The Problems of MSU's
Student Government by Professor Jack Samuels
-History of American Student
Activism by CUNY Professor Angus Johnston
-Marginalized Groups in
Progressive Movements by Femvolution President and SDS Member Leah Stone
-Fairness in the Economy by U.S. Senate
Candidate for the Socialist Party Greg Pason
-Discrimination in American
Law by S.P.E.C.T.R.U.M.S President Alan Akins
-Black Family Discussion by
SDS Member Carlo Rossi
-NATO, War, & Imperialism
by SDS Member Justin Wooten & Professor Grover Furr
-Animal Welfare 101 by Animal
Rights Activist Constance Li
-Meditation & Non-Violent
Resistance by Professor Maughn Gregory
-Progressive Music performed
by Rutgers Student Christian McFarland
 |
| Leah Stone about to begin her teach-in about marginalized groups in progressive movements |
The idea of Tent State University originated from Rutgers University who recently hosted their 10th Annual Tent State. Montclair State SDS, Rutgers, and Rowan University agreed to encamp in solidarity in an attempt to create a unified and powerful statewide voice that addresses the issues of higher education. It is time for the state of New Jersey and for the United States to treat higher education as a serious issue.
SDS was satisfied with Occupy MSU / Tent State University. Hopefully this will be an annual event that will serve to fight for a more just and accessible system of higher education.
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