Student protests at SF State
As most of your know there was a student protest on campus. Students occupied the Business Building and some blocked traffic on 19th Avenue. I felt a twinge of (Gator) pride coupled with concern.
I often give an example of blocking traffic on 19th as an example of civil disobedience. I wondered whether any of my Gators were responsible for doing it for real. When we were reading the Crito, I “promised” that I’d bail Gators out of jail, just as Crito had promised the court to post bond for Socrates. The convergence of class discussion and actual events was, well, creepy.
I didn’t know all the demands of the occupiers until I received a letter from President Corrigan. I followed the link he provided to their WordPress blog. I’m in favor of a lot of their demands. Two things in particular struck me about Corrigan’s letter. He mentioned that he had participated in the “real” (my words, not his) civil rights campaigns of the past, the very ones we studied this semester.
The other thing that most grabbed my attention was that Corrigan highlighted the same question we pondered in class: does it really count as an act of civil disobedience if you’re not willing to take the punishment that comes with it?
It’s always heartening to have events connect with classroom discussion.
