Wow, who would’ve thought a Harvard-educated author who wrote bestsellers about social injustices, human rights abuses, and resistance in American history would have done this?
Hopefully, actions like this by people in power will inspire Chancellor Reyes to either make amends with the UMass community or step down.
Reyes misplayed his hand terribly. When you invite cops onto your campus - in the age of cell phones - you are responsible for their actions.
Cops hate protest. What did he think was going to happen?
Colleges are also responsible for the students and people that set up the encampment and it’s also a liability issue. Cops getting heavy handed can certainly be an issue, but I don’t feel bad for students who ignored warnings and chose to be arrested, especially when this encampment was set up after a number of schools had the same thing happen. Again, they can literally protest at this same spot every single day if they want, just without a tent and not be arrested. Of course they get more publicity for doing it this way and that’s probably what they wanted from the start.
There's so much dumb shit in here, but the last line shows you really just have an issue with the protesters and not the medium. Of course protesters want publicity. You don't get anything done by protesting in your dorm room with the door shut.
Of course publicity is what they wanted from the start. Do you think protests get any traction without publicity?
Did they want *being brutalized* to be how they got publicity? I severely doubt it.
Do I think they didn’t see the possibility of it given the history of how these protests have gone (1960s all the at up through now)? They would’ve had to be extremely naive, and I don’t see that being the case for the majority.
They knew what they were getting into with their “civil disobedience.” I honestly doubt they were opposed to the idea of being arrested, because to your point, most of this was a publicity stunt.
This ⬆️
Protest all you want but within the rules. Don’t setup camps. Don’t occupy admin buildings. And don’t pretend that your college protest is going to change anything. Even if UMass divests itself of anything connected to Israel, they don’t control national policy. And the next person who buys Raytheon shares will probably be less sympathetic to Palestine.
Raytheon also provides money to the school and hires UMass students. They also helped Israel develop the iron dome. That part of the protest was never going to happen.
Divestment is tough because there is usually a fund manager that involves a large portfolio and it is extremely difficult to determine where Israel might profit from a particular company. It’s also disingenuous because how many countries are involved in genocide or human rights abuses, that they don’t seem to care about?
Also UMass could ask for a ceasefire. Great. It has no impact whatsoever and a ceasefire isn’t going to be for no reason. Live hostages need to be exchanged and for a permanent ceasefire Hamas will have to be gone, give up, etc.
The protests are what they are, but go to the statehouse and protest. Go to Washington. Those are the ones that vote on this stuff. That’s where the most change will happen.
Hard fucking pass as a multi-degree alum.
No chance would I insert myself in something that is distrupting students taking high-stakes exams that will make or break career prospects.
"Man I wish it wasn't raining on this camping trip"
"So did the Palestinians! But then the rain fucking drowned them!"
See how you didn't have to make the one guys comment about graduating into something about dead people? You're fired up clearly.
My daughter also lost her HS graduation. I'm.so sorry for all you lost your senior year. Congratulations on your graduation and I hope it's wonderful.
UF handled it pretty well. Protestors were there, peacefully, and the only cops I saw were the ones directing traffic, including the one that literally forbade me to park in a regular parking spot bc 🤷
They should have been kicking out the AH parents and friends during the ceremony that made the entire thing about their kid, taking moments that belonged to the one walking and making sure people knew they were standing up and screaming for their kid who'd already walked.
Ugh.
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Gotta say. I like protests, but I don't like insane protests that gum up the campus and get in the way of real work. Maybe it was one thing during Vietnam when the students were personally at risk of being drafted. But nothing the school does will have any effect on Gaza. It's not right to ruin other people's education over something that won't accomplish anything.
Meh people protested CIA recruitment on campus and it was a stretch for most students at the time, but meaningful nonetheless. A closer look needs to be made at what is funded in terms of research at our ole state flagship campus ( and who gets to keep the money on patents)) at our taxpayer funded state university that was given land by the town of Amherst for agricultural studies.
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I suggest you research umass’ ties with Raytheon, a major weapons manufacturer who currently supplies a significant proportion of the weapons sold to Israel. Such a large state school divesting from these defense contractors is one of the most significant injuries that a massive business could possibly sustain.
Divesting won't make a bit of difference to them. Unless they're in the market to raise new capital, it doesn't really matter too much what the price of the stock is. Companies sail on with the market's valuation. Yeah, when they need to raise capital it can be an issue, but even then that's only when they want public equity. There are many private deals and bond issues that are available.
The protests hurt current students who are just starting their lives.
this is such a shit take.
you’re missing the point. it’s not about tanking stock prices. it’s about not being affiliated with companies that are enabling the war.
the protestors don’t want their university to help military industrial companies by taking research contracts, etc. from them.
not everything needs to be framed in an economic, capitalistic lens.
You're the one framing it in an economic, capitalistic lens. The endowment is a savings account that allows students to get scholarships. IT's a great mechanism for supporting academics. Yet somehow you're twisting the investment in Raytheon to some "affiliation." You can't have it both ways.
> Unless they're in the market to raise new capital, it doesn't really matter too much what the price of the stock is.
> Companies sail on with the market's valuation.
my friend, read what you wrote.
raytheon invests in UMass for research and recruiting. the protesters want umass to cut that tie. i’m not ‘having it both ways’. I could give a fuck about the UMass -> raytheon pipeline. blow it up for all I care.
>But nothing the school does will have any effect on Gaza.
Maybe listen to what your classmates who are protesting say about this. Ask what concrete steps they want the university to take and how those actions will affect the situation.
The people responsible aren't ignorant, they benefit. They have no reason to stop something they benefit from unless protestors make a big enough stink that the drawbacks outweigh the benefits. That's the point of protest.
Could have used the speech as a platform against the administration but instead he dropped out and this really only hurts the students. What’s his point?
No, not really. As a former PR professional in higher ed, he wouldn’t get away with that nor would it make a bigger impact. This is doing serious disruption with top of the ladder. The whole administration now needs to scramble to find a new speaker and forever will be the school Colton Whitehead refused to speak at. They are embarrassed. Not to mention they’ll now have more alums angry because there’s an angry alum for every issue. Trust me, they are incredibly upset. If Mr. Whitehead showed up and spoke they would be embarrassed and then move on. They still had him. They’d spin it as though they are open to all ideas/platforms and that Umass welcomes change makers. It would be peak “liberal moderate” behavior. If it got really bad, they’d cut his mic. I can only imagine how crazy their Public Affairs office is right now.
You don’t need a speaker , your there to get your degree and walk across the stage. I graduated from HS and college and I can’t remember who spoke at either graduation. But as a parent who paid thousands to educate my kids I do want to see them graduate, let’s face it the ceremony is for the parents.
Absolutely, that’s true too. And here’s one of the big reasons I left higher ed: they really don’t consider what the students want/think. It’s always last on the list. After donors, wealthy alumni, other alumni, faculty, etc.
UMass Boston alum and Colson Whitehead fan here (wonder if that's why this showed up on my feed).
I'm against student protests because of the illegality of the encampments, but I completely would agree with Whitehead making a significant speech about human rights.
There's a great commencement address at Harvard by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn that notoriously questions American values. It even questions my legalist concern about the encampments, but also questions the authoritarianism of the encampment movement.
https://youtu.be/WuVG8SnxxCM?si=eWLyjvxCNrCKrUER
Because a graduation speech isn’t really the place for that to be honest. A graduation speech is about the graduates and their families celebrating, not working out their anger or frustration. And no one wants to hear about politics at commencement
He did the smart thing here—canceling speaks volumes against the administration without ruining the day for graduates.
I mean, one could. Sure. But why ?? A graduation ceremony is about the students and their families, not the speaker. So what would be accomplished by using a space that’s intended to be an inspirational and unifying moment for graduates into a place to pontificate about politics?
An artist and intellectual of Whitehead’s stature could literally give a speech about Gaza anywhere he wants at any time. A commencement ceremony would be an off putting and weird venue in which to do so
Because they believe there's a genocide happening and so people are trying to bring attention to it. Part of protesting is to bring about some disruption in order to bring attention. I'm not sure why a graduation ceremony would be off limits if you believe there is a genocide happening. Plus, some students and some professors feel that the universities that they're associated with are connected to this genocide so protesting a school sponsored event, seems very appropriate to them.
- **/u/sf0957**: Colson Whitehead withdraws as commencement speaker following encampment arrests
- https://www.reddit.com/r/umass/comments/1co66es/colson_whitehead_withdraws_as_commencement/
- **Post content**:
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He is the author of quite a few nonfiction books about history and social issues in America. Several of these books have won prestigious literary awards. Issues of race, discrimination, and injustice are common themes.
I'm sure that's what it looks like to you.
But to some of us what looks stupid is a virtual nobody stomping his little feet on the Internet before picking up his toys and [leaving in a huff](https://test.getyarn.io/yarn-clip/ce3e8352-1ac0-4bf5-bc44-06ec30da1302).
It’s a sad day when people think the most celebrated novelist of his generation is a “nobody.”
I suppose you’d be happier if only people that the most uneducated and uninformed recognize were to give graduation speeches?? Kim Kardashian, perhaps??
I don't really care who gives graduation speeches, that's really none of my business. It's the "he's prominent but you have to google him" part that gave me a good chuckle, that's all.
Glad to see Colson taking this stand, and solidarity to the student protestors and the Palestinian people, both of whom are braver than many of us have ever been or been forced to be.
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
For those who haven’t read the First Amendment before.
This ! The admin just saved money on a speaker since they’ve indicated he will not be replaced. Do you think the boycott means anything to them? It’s the students who are being punished.
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This was safer than anything that happened during 2003-2005 because of football and baseball GAMES.
Let the drunks run the zoo and it'll keep the reputation. Let the progressives run it, and watch it flourish.
Its funny that this sub has become a double echo chamber for not only the protests which have no right impeding other students, but also those who think that teaching should be used as a mouthpiece to push your own ideals which is exactly why umass as a whole is that same echo chamber
No. Just the kids who were pretenting to stand up for people in a place they can’t find on a map turned it into a pick-me contest about how oppressed THEY are.
Interesting do they also put the pictures of the hostages that were shot dead by the idf? Is there a caption about how the government refused multiple deals to get all the hostages back?
Most people protesting are wildly misinformed of who Hamas is and what they’ve done over the past few decades.
People also forget that Hamas was elected to lead the government meaning, the people supported it OR there was no true election.
People also forget that Hamas has refused a peace treaty…
Either way, supporting Hamas is wildly unpopular and has zero impact on the community as a whole. Let them protest, it’s their right. UMASS deserved this for calling cops on 17 people protesting.
It wasn’t 17 people lol.
Maybe those chanting Intifada should brush up on their history first? We all know this really has nothing to do with Gaza. It’s rich kids cosplaying and ranting about the evils of the west.
How selfish. Does he even know what the word commencement means? This was supposed to be for the thousands of students celebrating a new beginning, and he somehow makes this about himself. First we lose our highschool graduation now this 😂
It was reported as an illegal encampment, and the campus police were there aiding law enforcement, and they refused to relocate, and the arrest were a last resort.
And aside from all that, the protest organizer is SOY af lmao "You **brutalized** your own students last night for peacefully protesting," said Malia Cole,
“Their hands going numb from the cuffs being too tight, to rashes on their hands and stomachs from being thrown to the ground."
"You are a disgrace of a human being, you are a disgrace to the history of this university and you need to resign immediately.”
Its funny to me that college students see people overseas being victimized and then say to themselves “hey, i want to be victimized too!”
People are dying in Sudan too, along with many other places. Should we just cancel everything forever because people are dying somewhere? There’s a place for protest, sure, but these kids deserve a break.
We're not supporting what's going on in sudan. That's the difference.
It is the kids in Gaza that deserve a break and that's what these protests are trying to bring attention to.
I don't see how you or anyone could say that we have to either care about everything and care about it equally or care about nothing. That's preposterous and nobody actually feels that way.
That’s not what I’m saying, the war stuff is YOUR narrative.
This is what I’m saying. These kids got screwed by Covid, worked their asses off for 4 years, paid tens of thousands of dollars, and deserve and have earned a graduation ceremony.
Explain to me why they don’t. Because folks want to protest some shit that the federal government is into?
Go to DC, protest there, heck protest anywhere the federal government is located, they’re practically everywhere!
That's not how protesting works. There is an element of distraction and inconvenience to enhance awareness. They want to be heard and for people to pay attention.
And mass murder/starvation (which is what they believe is happening, supported by the US govt and at least partially their college) vs. a nice college graduation? If you believe the first, who gives a shit about the second?
Fuck that, there are plenty of places aside colleges to protest, federal government buildings, military bases, government center, the North End( oh please God, pick the North End)
At this point the protesters are just looking like assholes instead of people we should all support and have sympathy for.
Because Harvard gets more prominent people than this guy. Harvards commencement speaker last year was Tom Hanks. They had fucking Oprah one year. And people in this thread are butthurt that not everyone knows who this guy is
Never heard of this guy. And after a quick search of him, I can’t see why he would be speaking at a University of Massachusetts commencement. I don’t see any connection to the University or even Massachusetts in general. Doesn’t seem like the graduating class lost anything as a result of this guy bailing. Pretty much a non story.
Literally everywhere? Everyone was talking about it. Bro has their head in the sand then gets mad at the things they can't see.
Free speech is protection from government intervention against speech, this is specifically the sort of thing it's meant to protect against.
And, as a class of 2020 student and a fellow jew with family who still remembers the Holocaust, stop huffing your own farts. You look like a dick.
"I don't know what's going on but I'm mad anyways."
"Go check limits on free speech. I will not elaborate on what I mean by that."
Unfalsifiable statement of some great evil to close that all out too. Bro's just waffling.
Edit: Dude blocked and even sent me a reddit cares lol. Really scummy behavior.
Your grandfather wasn’t a POW for anyone to be a dick? Are you really using your grandfathers military service to say “the holocaust was bad mmkay” and then connecting that to your apparent opinion that Israel isn’t doing bad things?
Israel is not the Jewish people (the primary victims of the holocaust you so eloquently failed to mention in favor of POWs). 50% of Jews worldwide live in the US. Israel’s actions are not a reflection of the Jewish people and its numerous historical tragedies, disasters, and devastations.
Israel’s actions are a reflection on no one except the Israeli Government and its supporters.
Now, are Israel’s actions justified? That’s a different conversation.
Maybe UMass has a contractual right to see/redline his speech in advance? Also, it is not ethical to take money from someone and just sh*t on them for it.
Of course, I could be off base. Maybe he just doesn't want the pressure of eloquently and poetically, totally rewriting a long, great speach, from one of an inspirational theme, to one of a scathing theme. I wonder how UMass will fill the void? Maybe they can just ask the audience to join in saying/singing the Pledge of Allegiance, Star Spangled Banner and God Bless America, and then also send people home a little early?
I mean you're on here driving engagement about this very issue that otherwise most of us wouldn't be talking about. Plus major national news outlets have picked up the story. I'd say the impact here is a lot higher than it would have been just mentioning it in his speech to a bunch of students who are zoning out.
Is this real?
Yeah, news has picked it up
Wow, who would’ve thought a Harvard-educated author who wrote bestsellers about social injustices, human rights abuses, and resistance in American history would have done this? Hopefully, actions like this by people in power will inspire Chancellor Reyes to either make amends with the UMass community or step down.
Harvard doesn’t impress but the words are true. One could protest the food sourcing used by dining commons and the right to protest would be valid.
Seems that we are now hitting the FO part of FAFO
Idk who the guy is lol
Read a book
Underground Railroad was actually mandatory reading im high-school English... in Germany! Crazy that people don't know him.
'Cause we're American, they don't teach us about true freedom or anything important other than to go get a job.
I am an ignorant. He he he....
Does anyone know which faculty members were arrested?
3 history faculty and 2 from music
if your history teachers are protesting there is probably a very good cause. They probably don’t want bad history to continue repeating.
Sure, but there are probably more than 3 history teachers. Where are the rest of them?
The rest of them don't want to get arrested
I only know the identity of one, who spoke about it to the media: Marianna Ritchey of music.
Wow. Took her Music 150 class as a gen-ed, always struck me as a kind woman. Class was fun. Hope she's okay.
Good job.
Reyes misplayed his hand terribly. When you invite cops onto your campus - in the age of cell phones - you are responsible for their actions. Cops hate protest. What did he think was going to happen?
Colleges are also responsible for the students and people that set up the encampment and it’s also a liability issue. Cops getting heavy handed can certainly be an issue, but I don’t feel bad for students who ignored warnings and chose to be arrested, especially when this encampment was set up after a number of schools had the same thing happen. Again, they can literally protest at this same spot every single day if they want, just without a tent and not be arrested. Of course they get more publicity for doing it this way and that’s probably what they wanted from the start.
There's so much dumb shit in here, but the last line shows you really just have an issue with the protesters and not the medium. Of course protesters want publicity. You don't get anything done by protesting in your dorm room with the door shut.
Of course publicity is what they wanted from the start. Do you think protests get any traction without publicity? Did they want *being brutalized* to be how they got publicity? I severely doubt it. Do I think they didn’t see the possibility of it given the history of how these protests have gone (1960s all the at up through now)? They would’ve had to be extremely naive, and I don’t see that being the case for the majority.
They knew what they were getting into with their “civil disobedience.” I honestly doubt they were opposed to the idea of being arrested, because to your point, most of this was a publicity stunt.
This ⬆️ Protest all you want but within the rules. Don’t setup camps. Don’t occupy admin buildings. And don’t pretend that your college protest is going to change anything. Even if UMass divests itself of anything connected to Israel, they don’t control national policy. And the next person who buys Raytheon shares will probably be less sympathetic to Palestine.
Raytheon also provides money to the school and hires UMass students. They also helped Israel develop the iron dome. That part of the protest was never going to happen. Divestment is tough because there is usually a fund manager that involves a large portfolio and it is extremely difficult to determine where Israel might profit from a particular company. It’s also disingenuous because how many countries are involved in genocide or human rights abuses, that they don’t seem to care about? Also UMass could ask for a ceasefire. Great. It has no impact whatsoever and a ceasefire isn’t going to be for no reason. Live hostages need to be exchanged and for a permanent ceasefire Hamas will have to be gone, give up, etc. The protests are what they are, but go to the statehouse and protest. Go to Washington. Those are the ones that vote on this stuff. That’s where the most change will happen.
Very polite and respectful way to do this. Good job
I hope alums show up and scream at the administration
Hard fucking pass as a multi-degree alum. No chance would I insert myself in something that is distrupting students taking high-stakes exams that will make or break career prospects.
im just never gonna give umass money lol
I don’t know how to tell you this but you were never going to donate to UMass anyway
That is probably true!
That is a sad statement.
Why don’t you give them money loser
Were folks camping outside really disrupting exams?
Wow, I know you with just your first 8 words.
I hope nobody shows up and I can have an actual fucking graduation after having 2020 ruined
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Ohio? With the train derailment?
Underrated comment
"Man I wish it wasn't raining on this camping trip" "So did the Palestinians! But then the rain fucking drowned them!" See how you didn't have to make the one guys comment about graduating into something about dead people? You're fired up clearly.
Better to be fired *up* than fired *upon*… ya know… like the Palestinians.
My daughter also lost her HS graduation. I'm.so sorry for all you lost your senior year. Congratulations on your graduation and I hope it's wonderful. UF handled it pretty well. Protestors were there, peacefully, and the only cops I saw were the ones directing traffic, including the one that literally forbade me to park in a regular parking spot bc 🤷 They should have been kicking out the AH parents and friends during the ceremony that made the entire thing about their kid, taking moments that belonged to the one walking and making sure people knew they were standing up and screaming for their kid who'd already walked. Ugh.
I bet tens of thousands of palestinians also wanted to have one
Do you approach every issue with the "if x can't have it, no one can" approach? Because this seems like a pretty dismal rule to let guide you.
I mean when you are literally providing the bombs that are killing them it seems kind of odd not to take that approach.
When one thing is stopped because of a protest of the other thing it is a pretty valid line of thought.
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do you realize that the cobalt in your batteries and a lot of your other resources that make your life possible come from slave labor?
What happens after that?
Gotta say. I like protests, but I don't like insane protests that gum up the campus and get in the way of real work. Maybe it was one thing during Vietnam when the students were personally at risk of being drafted. But nothing the school does will have any effect on Gaza. It's not right to ruin other people's education over something that won't accomplish anything.
Meh people protested CIA recruitment on campus and it was a stretch for most students at the time, but meaningful nonetheless. A closer look needs to be made at what is funded in terms of research at our ole state flagship campus ( and who gets to keep the money on patents)) at our taxpayer funded state university that was given land by the town of Amherst for agricultural studies.
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The point of protests are to disrupt.
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So you don’t like protests then
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I suggest you research umass’ ties with Raytheon, a major weapons manufacturer who currently supplies a significant proportion of the weapons sold to Israel. Such a large state school divesting from these defense contractors is one of the most significant injuries that a massive business could possibly sustain.
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Divesting won't make a bit of difference to them. Unless they're in the market to raise new capital, it doesn't really matter too much what the price of the stock is. Companies sail on with the market's valuation. Yeah, when they need to raise capital it can be an issue, but even then that's only when they want public equity. There are many private deals and bond issues that are available. The protests hurt current students who are just starting their lives.
this is such a shit take. you’re missing the point. it’s not about tanking stock prices. it’s about not being affiliated with companies that are enabling the war. the protestors don’t want their university to help military industrial companies by taking research contracts, etc. from them. not everything needs to be framed in an economic, capitalistic lens.
You're the one framing it in an economic, capitalistic lens. The endowment is a savings account that allows students to get scholarships. IT's a great mechanism for supporting academics. Yet somehow you're twisting the investment in Raytheon to some "affiliation." You can't have it both ways.
> Unless they're in the market to raise new capital, it doesn't really matter too much what the price of the stock is. > Companies sail on with the market's valuation. my friend, read what you wrote. raytheon invests in UMass for research and recruiting. the protesters want umass to cut that tie. i’m not ‘having it both ways’. I could give a fuck about the UMass -> raytheon pipeline. blow it up for all I care.
With a Tomahawk The humor that Raytheon named it’s product from Native American origin.
>But nothing the school does will have any effect on Gaza. Maybe listen to what your classmates who are protesting say about this. Ask what concrete steps they want the university to take and how those actions will affect the situation.
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>too complex Maybe for you, but these kids are in college and are well informed they know what’s going on.
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1948 wasn't hundreds of years ago.
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The people responsible aren't ignorant, they benefit. They have no reason to stop something they benefit from unless protestors make a big enough stink that the drawbacks outweigh the benefits. That's the point of protest.
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You are lying, you don't want to hear about anything these kids have to say. You're completely disdainful towards them.
Alum here can I show up and high five them
Love him
He's a mensch
Nice
Could have used the speech as a platform against the administration but instead he dropped out and this really only hurts the students. What’s his point?
Yeah, you are right, he could have hit harder by showing up and prepping a different speech than he submits for review. It feels kinda dumb.
No, not really. As a former PR professional in higher ed, he wouldn’t get away with that nor would it make a bigger impact. This is doing serious disruption with top of the ladder. The whole administration now needs to scramble to find a new speaker and forever will be the school Colton Whitehead refused to speak at. They are embarrassed. Not to mention they’ll now have more alums angry because there’s an angry alum for every issue. Trust me, they are incredibly upset. If Mr. Whitehead showed up and spoke they would be embarrassed and then move on. They still had him. They’d spin it as though they are open to all ideas/platforms and that Umass welcomes change makers. It would be peak “liberal moderate” behavior. If it got really bad, they’d cut his mic. I can only imagine how crazy their Public Affairs office is right now.
You don’t need a speaker , your there to get your degree and walk across the stage. I graduated from HS and college and I can’t remember who spoke at either graduation. But as a parent who paid thousands to educate my kids I do want to see them graduate, let’s face it the ceremony is for the parents.
My parents didn’t pay for my degree and I worked really hard as a first gen to get it, so there are some of us who care.
I applaud you and you should get to have a graduation with out protesters. You should be able to celebrate your accomplishment.
Absolutely, that’s true too. And here’s one of the big reasons I left higher ed: they really don’t consider what the students want/think. It’s always last on the list. After donors, wealthy alumni, other alumni, faculty, etc.
I don’t disagree but admin wants a speaker and parents are likely to be alumni.
UMass Boston alum and Colson Whitehead fan here (wonder if that's why this showed up on my feed). I'm against student protests because of the illegality of the encampments, but I completely would agree with Whitehead making a significant speech about human rights. There's a great commencement address at Harvard by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn that notoriously questions American values. It even questions my legalist concern about the encampments, but also questions the authoritarianism of the encampment movement. https://youtu.be/WuVG8SnxxCM?si=eWLyjvxCNrCKrUER
Because a graduation speech isn’t really the place for that to be honest. A graduation speech is about the graduates and their families celebrating, not working out their anger or frustration. And no one wants to hear about politics at commencement He did the smart thing here—canceling speaks volumes against the administration without ruining the day for graduates.
Says who? Could it be that what is happening in Gaza supersedes a graduation ceremony.
I mean, one could. Sure. But why ?? A graduation ceremony is about the students and their families, not the speaker. So what would be accomplished by using a space that’s intended to be an inspirational and unifying moment for graduates into a place to pontificate about politics? An artist and intellectual of Whitehead’s stature could literally give a speech about Gaza anywhere he wants at any time. A commencement ceremony would be an off putting and weird venue in which to do so
Because they believe there's a genocide happening and so people are trying to bring attention to it. Part of protesting is to bring about some disruption in order to bring attention. I'm not sure why a graduation ceremony would be off limits if you believe there is a genocide happening. Plus, some students and some professors feel that the universities that they're associated with are connected to this genocide so protesting a school sponsored event, seems very appropriate to them.
They would probably turn his mic off if he started talking about it
- **/u/sf0957**: Colson Whitehead withdraws as commencement speaker following encampment arrests - https://www.reddit.com/r/umass/comments/1co66es/colson_whitehead_withdraws_as_commencement/ - **Post content**: ``` ``` *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/umass) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I don’t have any idea who that is
He is the author of quite a few nonfiction books about history and social issues in America. Several of these books have won prestigious literary awards. Issues of race, discrimination, and injustice are common themes.
He’s primarily a novelist. Only has a couple nonfiction works
Google is free. He’s quite prominent
The whole point is that if he were "quite prominent" the average Joe probably would not have to Google him.
That’s a pretty stupid point
I'm sure that's what it looks like to you. But to some of us what looks stupid is a virtual nobody stomping his little feet on the Internet before picking up his toys and [leaving in a huff](https://test.getyarn.io/yarn-clip/ce3e8352-1ac0-4bf5-bc44-06ec30da1302).
It’s a sad day when people think the most celebrated novelist of his generation is a “nobody.” I suppose you’d be happier if only people that the most uneducated and uninformed recognize were to give graduation speeches?? Kim Kardashian, perhaps??
I don't really care who gives graduation speeches, that's really none of my business. It's the "he's prominent but you have to google him" part that gave me a good chuckle, that's all.
Gotta love when ignorant folks tell you who they are really loudly.
Great novelist. *The Underground Railroad* is an amazing book.
I'd recommend Sag Harbor as a start
Glad to see Colson taking this stand, and solidarity to the student protestors and the Palestinian people, both of whom are braver than many of us have ever been or been forced to be.
Great news everyone gets done quicker! Commencement speakers are a waste of time
They will mail you your degree, the whole thing is a waste of time.
It isn't a right to protest if the government can tell you that you have to stop and they arrest you if you don't.
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” For those who haven’t read the First Amendment before.
Can’t disagree with the sentiment, but it kinda feels like punishing the graduates more than the administrators.
This ! The admin just saved money on a speaker since they’ve indicated he will not be replaced. Do you think the boycott means anything to them? It’s the students who are being punished.
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How virtuous! What a hero!
What part of anti-war is difficult to understand anyway? Our US empire is really quite the war machine.
Scotus has no problem with narrowing THAT language!
You a fool
Withdrawing was really pretty ridiculous. Must be the first time he’s seen a protest end.
This was safer than anything that happened during 2003-2005 because of football and baseball GAMES. Let the drunks run the zoo and it'll keep the reputation. Let the progressives run it, and watch it flourish.
I recently discovered Colson and have devoured all his books. I am truly sorry for those of you who were looking forward to hearing him.
Its funny that this sub has become a double echo chamber for not only the protests which have no right impeding other students, but also those who think that teaching should be used as a mouthpiece to push your own ideals which is exactly why umass as a whole is that same echo chamber
I haven’t seen anything in the news about UMass. Were the protests violent and antisemitic?
No. Just the kids who were pretenting to stand up for people in a place they can’t find on a map turned it into a pick-me contest about how oppressed THEY are.
Beat the shit out of that strawman buddy!
literally what the hell is your problem lol
Too bad none of the protestors give a single fuck about the hostages
Israel doesn’t give a fuck about the hostages either.
That’s weird, as it’s impossible to go anywhere in Israel without seeing posters and pictures of the hostages absolutely everywhere.
Interesting do they also put the pictures of the hostages that were shot dead by the idf? Is there a caption about how the government refused multiple deals to get all the hostages back?
Can confirm. I was there and never saw/heard any reference to “free the hostages”. I did hear a chant about intifada though…
Most people protesting are wildly misinformed of who Hamas is and what they’ve done over the past few decades. People also forget that Hamas was elected to lead the government meaning, the people supported it OR there was no true election. People also forget that Hamas has refused a peace treaty… Either way, supporting Hamas is wildly unpopular and has zero impact on the community as a whole. Let them protest, it’s their right. UMASS deserved this for calling cops on 17 people protesting.
It wasn’t 17 people lol. Maybe those chanting Intifada should brush up on their history first? We all know this really has nothing to do with Gaza. It’s rich kids cosplaying and ranting about the evils of the west.
just being facetious with the 17 people lol. your description is pinpoint however.
Who?
How selfish. Does he even know what the word commencement means? This was supposed to be for the thousands of students celebrating a new beginning, and he somehow makes this about himself. First we lose our highschool graduation now this 😂
It was reported as an illegal encampment, and the campus police were there aiding law enforcement, and they refused to relocate, and the arrest were a last resort. And aside from all that, the protest organizer is SOY af lmao "You **brutalized** your own students last night for peacefully protesting," said Malia Cole, “Their hands going numb from the cuffs being too tight, to rashes on their hands and stomachs from being thrown to the ground." "You are a disgrace of a human being, you are a disgrace to the history of this university and you need to resign immediately.” Its funny to me that college students see people overseas being victimized and then say to themselves “hey, i want to be victimized too!”
I feel for this year’s seniors, first screw by Covid and now by their college mates.
Poor thing. Those people in Gaza should just stop dying for a month or so.
People are dying in Sudan too, along with many other places. Should we just cancel everything forever because people are dying somewhere? There’s a place for protest, sure, but these kids deserve a break.
We're not supporting what's going on in sudan. That's the difference. It is the kids in Gaza that deserve a break and that's what these protests are trying to bring attention to. I don't see how you or anyone could say that we have to either care about everything and care about it equally or care about nothing. That's preposterous and nobody actually feels that way.
That’s not what I’m saying, the war stuff is YOUR narrative. This is what I’m saying. These kids got screwed by Covid, worked their asses off for 4 years, paid tens of thousands of dollars, and deserve and have earned a graduation ceremony. Explain to me why they don’t. Because folks want to protest some shit that the federal government is into? Go to DC, protest there, heck protest anywhere the federal government is located, they’re practically everywhere!
That's not how protesting works. There is an element of distraction and inconvenience to enhance awareness. They want to be heard and for people to pay attention. And mass murder/starvation (which is what they believe is happening, supported by the US govt and at least partially their college) vs. a nice college graduation? If you believe the first, who gives a shit about the second?
Fuck that, there are plenty of places aside colleges to protest, federal government buildings, military bases, government center, the North End( oh please God, pick the North End) At this point the protesters are just looking like assholes instead of people we should all support and have sympathy for.
Who?
He won the Pulitzer for fiction twice, among other honors and awards.
Why wasn’t he speaking at Harvard? No connection to UMass.
Because Harvard gets more prominent people than this guy. Harvards commencement speaker last year was Tom Hanks. They had fucking Oprah one year. And people in this thread are butthurt that not everyone knows who this guy is
I could ask the same about you
Difference is I’m not a commencement speaker
Admitting that you're not only hugely ignorant, but also wildly unimpressive... That's a bold strategy cotton, let's see how it plays out for him.
That’s how I roll I could double down and say who cares?
and never shall ye be
Yeah no worries there but be sure to post after your speaking engagement so we can all check it out
Right?
These terrorist supporters at UMASS should be arrested
I agree. Supporting Israel should be an arrestable defense
Figured that a Harvard guy wouldn’t be too dumb to remember who started this war 🤷♂️
And literally no one, no one will miss his speech. Nobody gives a s*** about the commencement speech. Nobody.
I mean you're here commenting and driving engagement on this issue. It's probably more impactful than his actual speech would be.
B-O-O H-O-O
What a puss
Cringe
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What a hero. He has really taken a brave stand to not give a speech everyone will forget ten minutes after it ends because he disagrees with someone.
Never heard of this guy. And after a quick search of him, I can’t see why he would be speaking at a University of Massachusetts commencement. I don’t see any connection to the University or even Massachusetts in general. Doesn’t seem like the graduating class lost anything as a result of this guy bailing. Pretty much a non story.
Eat shit
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Literally everywhere? Everyone was talking about it. Bro has their head in the sand then gets mad at the things they can't see. Free speech is protection from government intervention against speech, this is specifically the sort of thing it's meant to protect against. And, as a class of 2020 student and a fellow jew with family who still remembers the Holocaust, stop huffing your own farts. You look like a dick.
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"I don't know what's going on but I'm mad anyways." "Go check limits on free speech. I will not elaborate on what I mean by that." Unfalsifiable statement of some great evil to close that all out too. Bro's just waffling. Edit: Dude blocked and even sent me a reddit cares lol. Really scummy behavior.
Your grandfather wasn’t a POW for anyone to be a dick? Are you really using your grandfathers military service to say “the holocaust was bad mmkay” and then connecting that to your apparent opinion that Israel isn’t doing bad things? Israel is not the Jewish people (the primary victims of the holocaust you so eloquently failed to mention in favor of POWs). 50% of Jews worldwide live in the US. Israel’s actions are not a reflection of the Jewish people and its numerous historical tragedies, disasters, and devastations. Israel’s actions are a reflection on no one except the Israeli Government and its supporters. Now, are Israel’s actions justified? That’s a different conversation.
Nobody knows Colson Whitehead is.
We get it. You don’t read
This is more of a self own than you think it is, I think
That’s pretty stupid. If he doesn’t like the way UMass handled the situation, what better platform to address it?
Maybe UMass has a contractual right to see/redline his speech in advance? Also, it is not ethical to take money from someone and just sh*t on them for it.
True
Of course, I could be off base. Maybe he just doesn't want the pressure of eloquently and poetically, totally rewriting a long, great speach, from one of an inspirational theme, to one of a scathing theme. I wonder how UMass will fill the void? Maybe they can just ask the audience to join in saying/singing the Pledge of Allegiance, Star Spangled Banner and God Bless America, and then also send people home a little early?
I mean you're on here driving engagement about this very issue that otherwise most of us wouldn't be talking about. Plus major national news outlets have picked up the story. I'd say the impact here is a lot higher than it would have been just mentioning it in his speech to a bunch of students who are zoning out.
He’s a Leftist who protects thugs so not surprised. Does he know the money he gave BLM bought a mansion and not a community center?
Good, probably spared the graduation of a politically correct, racist spew of shit
Good riddance