The Ten Most Ridiculous College Protests Of 2015
This article originally appeared in Forbes.
As 2015 comes to an end, it’s time to close the book on a wild year on the nation’s college campuses. Rampant political correctness, groupthink and student coddling has resulted in new lows for American higher education.For example, consider the ten most ridiculous student protests of 2015:
10. UC San Diego Students “Free the Nipple”
UC San Diego coeds held a topless gathering to protest gender inequality. Organizers provided masks, snacks, and body painting. One organizer told News10 she wanted to, “normalize the female breast.” Campus Reform reportedthat a male student who attended complained, “I do not understand why some females who were supporting the event, were topless but covered their nipples. Seemed contradictory for me.” Enough said.
9. California Polytechnic University Students Hold A “Shit-In”
Yes, you read that right. Cal Poly students held a three-day “shit-in” to protest the lack of access to gender neutral bathrooms. Students were encouraged to sign a mock toilet during the protest, on which messages such as “poop equality” were written, according to Campus Reform.
8. Students March For Free College At Campuses Across The Country
On November 12, students on campuses across the country organized the “Million Student March.” Participants made three demands—tuition-free public college, cancellation of all student debt and a $15 minimum wage for all campus workers. Protesters have not yet solved the problem of who would pay the trillion-dollar-plus tab.
7. Williams Students Declare “Uncomfortable Learning” Series Speaker Too Uncomfortable
Williams College students invited a conservative author and feminist critic to speak on campus as part of the “Uncomfortable Learning” speaker series. The students ended up cancelling the event due to, “the vehement reactions of students diametrically opposed to bringing Venker, a staunch antifeminist, to campus,” according to one of the student organizers. The prospect of listening to this female speaker must have been a little too uncomfortable.
6. Siena College Students Protest “Sexist” Kitchen Renovation Advertisement
Who doesn’t want a brand-new dream kitchen? Apparently, students at Siena College in New York. Upset that a Teakwood Builders Inc. billboard advertised a kitchen with the words, “your wife wants me,” students protested with signs such as, “Bake the patriarchy,” as reported by Campus Reform. But Teakwood Builders got the last laugh, thanking the students for “drawing attention” to their business.
5. Brown University Students Stage A “Die-in”
Brown University students held a protest against Americans “occupation” of America on Columbus Day, as reported by Campus Reform. As part of the protest, students held a “die-in,” during which time they laid down for 52 minutes and 30 seconds, which represented, “the 523 years of foreign occupation and indigenous resistance on this land base.” Brown has already changed the name of Columbus Day to Fall Weekend.
4. UT Austin Students Protest Concealed Carry With Dildos
This summer, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed into law a bill that allows license holders to carry concealed handguns on campus. Students at UT Austin are already organizing through Facebook a protest for when school is back in session next fall. Protesters will be “strapping gigantic swinging dildos to our backpacks in protest of campus carry.”
3. Oberlin Students Complain That Cafeteria Food Is Culturally Appropriated
Students at Oberlin College in Ohio are upset with the cafeteria food. A first-year student told The Oberlin Reviewthat the food service company, “has a history of blurring the line between culinary diversity and cultural appropriation by modifying the recipes without respect for certain Asian countries’ cuisines.” Give them credit for a new way to complain about cafeteria food.
2. Yale Students Protest In Support Of Halloween Costume Guidelines
A Yale University lecturer became the focus of widespread student protests in the fall when she dared to questionwhether the university’s Intercultural Affairs Committee should be offering guidelines for Halloween costumes. The lecturer and her husband, a University professor, became the target of student hysteria. The student outrage had an impact. Neither will be teaching at Yale this spring.
1. Amherst Students Object To Free Speech Supporters
A group of Amherst College students, known as “Amherst Uprising,” issued demands to their university, “to address the legacy of oppression on campus.” One target of their demand protest was a group of students who placed posters on the campus to promote free speech. Amherst Uprising called for the free speech fans to be disciplined and “be required to attend extensive training for racial and cultural competency.”
What all of these campus protests have in common is that they demonstrate just how out-of-touch college students are with how the world works beyond the college bubble. One wonders how today’s coddled undergraduates will adjust to the real world. Here’s hoping that these protesting college students become more self-aware in 2016.