What happened at U Pitt?

Hello QC students,

On September 25, 2009, the G-20 Summit convened in Pittsburgh, PA amidst organized protests. These protests covered a broad range of issues from climate change, to world hunger, to global trade, and finance.

Of greatest interests to us as students were the events specifically occurring in and around the University of Pittsburgh campus. As the protests escalated on Friday, U Pitt students, some not directly involved in the protests, found themselves "swept up into" the police efforts to contain the protests. To date, over 100 arrests have been made: many of them were college students.

Since the time of the protests and the subsequent police actions, a flurry of videos on YouTube offer a nearly panoramic view of the students' experiences. One student states, "we weren't rioting...we were just sitting there" in response to the tear gas that reached him in his study area. Countless other videos, images, and new stories confirm these details.

It would be of vital interest to this student body to consider:

1. What happened in Pittsburgh involved college students. This makes it important for the students of Queens College to discuss and understand these events.
2. Weapons were tested on American citizens for the first time.
3. The National Guard was present.

A vigorous and civil discussion of these points can lead us to many questions begging to be answered. Among those questions could be:

1. Were these students' rights to free speech and assembly violated?
2. Are there connections between these recent events and other protests throughout the last decade? the last century?
3. Has the aggressive use of force against peaceful demonstration escalated both in terms of military equipment and police organization?
4. What role did technology, specifically Twitter, play in the organization of the protests?

If you would like to discuss these issues and potentially take meaningful action to pass a resolution through the Academic Senate, please join in the conversation here on the blog.

Stay tuned for updates!