Students, Locals Join in Activism

Student protests historically have played important political roles, as in the Vietnam and Cold wars. More recently, two UNC freshmen were arrested during an October protest against war in Iraq at the Chapel Hill office of Rep. David Price, D-N.C.

Anna Dewitt, one of the students arrested during the protest, said both campus and local activist groups offer students a venue and a support network. Dewitt said she waited to become involved with peace movements until she arrived at college, where greater resources and autonomy make such involvement easier.

"When students enter into the world, they become more aware of important issues," she said. "College students are more a part of the world than they were before. Established organizations provide a venue and an organized way of expressing emotions ... They are useful in terms of training, resources and providing affirmation of views."

Sascha Bollag, a UNC freshman history major who also was arrested at the October protest at Price's office, said he became involved in many organizations to which he did not have access before arriving on campus.

Many UNC peace organizations, like those Bollag and Dewitt belong to, work in conjunction with local groups, though students usually do not hold leadership positions in those situations.

Peace 1st, a small group operating in the Triangle, coordinates antiwar events in which students often participate.

"We want to be a network, talking about what is going on, organizing and informing," said Phil Jones, Peace 1st coordinator. He said students offer organizations enthusiasm, naivete, a willingness to learn and bodies.

"A very small amount of students are involved in organization," Jones said. "Mostly they participate in events. Students were involved (in Peace 1st) at the start. But they were fed into campus organizations where they can be more involved."

Peace 1st does not recruit students actively, but Jones said UNC's campus provides an eager audience and a wealth of willing participants. "This is the easiest community to do peace work on. It is a progressive, liberal campus."

Despite UNC's purported liberal tendencies, peace organizations in other areas of the nation tend to have a higher degree of student leadership than seen in the Triangle.

"Ninety-eight percent of our organizers are college students -- everyone except me," said Diane Landsbery, executive director of Non-Violence Project USA, based in Miami. "Strong university leadership is what makes projects work. This is not an adult thing."

Dewitt said it is unfortunate that organizations are necessary at all, because ideally, students would act on their own initiatives. "I would like to say that students are so proactive that organizations were not necessary.

"Anything that is over-organized is dangerous, because you are acting in order to advance the aims of a group over acting because of feelings in your heart."

The State & National Editor can be reached at stntdesk@unc.edu.