Students speak out

Use our First Amendment rights beyond Facebook

Protesting has been a staple of college life for generations, allowing students to impact policy regarding war, civil rights and other issues without entering a voting booth or a town hall. While there has been an increase in political action by college students in recent years, more can be done.

We feel strongly about many different issues, but our voice is not being used strongly enough. Those in power follow the will of the people, and when we let them know what we want, they will either work toward it or take a chance at losing their jobs.

Change can come from peaceful protest. The demonstrations supporting Burmese people against a military-dominated government are a step in the right direction. The mass public demonstrations have ended with protest leaders tortured in military prisons, but their voice has been heard by the rest of the world.

President Bush announced tighter sanction on the government of Myanmar after weeks of public protests, including recent protests on our campus, the continuation of which will keep the issue in the public eye and the minds of those with political power.

The problems in Southeast Asia aren’t the only international events we as students should be making statements about, and there are plenty of American-based issues worthy of more than just an online group, bumper sticker or gel bracelet.

Walking down the quad past the Albert W. Brown building, the body count in the Iraq War is visible from a professor’s window. The battle being fought for the Iraqi people is a divisive issue and both sides shouldn’t be apathetic about acting out for their opinion.

The issue of life has come up many times in the past few years with abortion, the death penalty and stem cell research all being debated. Once again the sides are clearly drawn, but our voice is not heard.

Even local issues can be affected by protest. If you don’t like something the Brockport Student Government is doing, it’s more productive to speak out about it than to take pot shots from the comfort of your dorm room or office.

The problem with protesting in the present is that college students seem more interested in supporting causes on Facebook than in the public view. It is easier to join a group online supporting a cause, but the message you make is muddled. There are thousands of other advocacy groups online, including the ones arguing less essential questions like whether it’s soda or pop.

When we join a group and forget about it, nothing changes. There are no internal memos in Washington about changing policies based on the newest groups. Even the effects of “For every 1,000 student,s I will donate $1” groups are small compared to the results from protest.

Is there something different about us today from the generation who protested in the 1960s? It doesn’t seem like the Black Panthers and Vietnam War protesters would have been less vocal if they had Facebook.

The way we can change the tide of student apathy is to use Facebook and chalk on the sidewalks to call for meetings and action. We can.

We can even use our editorials to point out areas we need to focus on, although in a constructive way — not in the way The Collegian did with their recent four-word piece about President Bush.

In the end, the issue is action. We have the time to help bring about change and we have the numbers to make a clear statement. It should be our duty to use this to our advantage and help those who don’t have the option to speak out.