Occupy Rutgers

A citizen reporter sent us this description of Occupy Rutgers.

Occupy Rutgers, in solidarity with some of the other "Occupy" movements (including that of Occupy Newark and People's Organization for Progress), came together to awaken the students of RU and bring awareness to the campus. The event, which was open mic, allowed speakers to discuss where they stood in the movement. Speakers represented students, faculty and community organizers. Citing the mythical middle class, capitalism, rising student debt and an overall disenfranchisement of the student community, as contributing factors to the Occupy Rutgers movement, the speakers led chants including "Occupy Rutgers! Occupy Newark! Occupy the World."

Another really wonderful thing about this afternoon was that people (professors, student government representatives) were openly critical of the political, bureaucratic, and financial decisions that were being made at Rutgers.

-They discussed how Rutgers Newark is treated like a "second-class citizen" despite being the home of the RU Law School, RU Business School and (after the UMDNJ merger) RU Medical School.
-They discussed how a recent donation to an effort in Somalia (?) could not happen because of a restriction imposed by a student government constitution they didn't write themselves.
-They talked some about arbitrary deductions being taken from the student activity accounts without explanation.
-They discussed rising costs that far outweigh those of the neighboring universities that seem contrary to the fact that Rutgers is the largest university in the state, and definitely in Newark.
-They discussed corporate greed in Newark and how huge corporations continue to be given tax breaks without the requirement of a truly sustainable commitment to empowering the Newark community.

Most importantly, they discussed that historically there have been several movements that picked up considerable strength when students became involved. When they identified themselves as "the many" students, compared to "the few" administrators/decision makers, they did not come off as hopeless. They seemed fired up! I look forward to seeing what will happen.

Below are pictures by Julia Macedo