Last week, a group of students protested a talk given by Ehud Olmert, the former prime minister of Israel. Though I hesitate to even call their action a “protest,” because, as the video footage can attest, the interruption failed to be more than a mere disturbance.
While the Dimensions protest last year succeeded insofar as it garnered attention for Real Talk, the group of students that organized the Dimensions protest, but any further success is negligible at most. This latest attempt at student activism was not affiliated with Real Talk, though some members participated in both protests. This protest’s success was even more limited, in fact, the action essentially failed. This failure is a direct result of the group’s inappropriate and tasteless strategy.
The attention that the Dimensions protest received was due to the controversial venue choice, not the effectiveness of the actual protest. The majority of the attention directed at Real Talk was predominantly critical, and often unrelated to the content of protest itself. Their ambush of the Dimensions show actually precluded any productive dialogue, and the debacle, frankly, embarrassed the group.
In the wake of the Real Talk debacle, student protests are still is not taken seriously on campus, and the latest shenanigans will only further attract disparagement for student protesters. If you don’t believe me, just watch the video from Tuesday — the students are openly laughed at. The audience even applauded Olmert, prompting him to resume his speech. The protest is no more than a humorous blip on the audience members’ radar.
Now, I don’t mean to imply that protest cannot be a constructive means to voice opposition and demand change. There was a long period of time where I believed that even the Dimensions protest had its merits. The student body may have remained largely unconvinced that Dartmouth has a problem, but they were at least forced to consider, no matter how briefly, the possibility that it may.
As time elapsed, however, the Real Talk protest quickly slipped our minds, and any discernible change faded along with the memory of the protest. In the long run, they failed. Until the group can learn to protest properly, perhaps they should attempt to employ some other tactics, or desist altogether, if only to avoid further embarrassment.
As time elapsed, however, the protest quickly slipped our minds, and any discernible change faded along with the memory of the protest. In the long run, the protest failed. Until students can learn to protest properly, perhaps they should attempt to employ some other tactics, or desist altogether, if only to avoid further embarrassment. For an example of a more effective and worthwhile protest (though not a perfect one), perhaps the students considering protest as a form of resistance can look at the recent events at Brown University.
The protest against New York City police commissioner Ray Kelly is a much better example of the potential effectiveness of protest as a strategy for opposition. The protest at Brown differed from this most recent stunt in a variety of ways. First, the students did not use protest as their primary method of opposition; they assembled more than 500 signatures on a petition to cancel the Kelly speech. The students turned to protest as a means to voice their concerns after the administration ignored their petition. Second, the protest engaged the Providence, R.I., community and had the support of many locals. In contrast, the Hanover locals who witnessed the protest seemed surprised and perturbed, rather than enthusiastic or supportive. Finally, the protest itself at Brown was better planned and executed; it was bolder, larger and generally more convincing than the Olmert protest.
The Brown protest is not without its faults. Many have criticized the protesters for exercising their right to free speech at the detriment of Kelly’s own right. These complaints are legitimate, but they also don’t change the fact that the Brown students still display a much better understanding of how to effectively execute a protest.
Recent history suggests that Dartmouth student protesters seem to be more concerned with causing a scene than achieving any results, while the protesters in Providence were at least backed by a strong conviction and a clear purpose. It would have been more effective if the students had not protested at all, but rather asked a well-crafted question of Olmert and demanded an appropriate answer. In the Brown video, one can hear a student chant, “Tough questions aren’t enough!” But here in Hanover, I think a pointed question would have been more than enough.
This column has been updated to reflect the following correction:
Correction: November 17, 2013
The column incorrectly stated that the Olmert protest was organized by Real Talk. The protest was not sponsored by Real Talk, although some Real Talk members participated.
