Photo by Pierce Turner
The UNF Students for a Democratic Society held a rally at the Green Tuesday protesting and demanding UNF President John Delaney make some changes to the campus.
The SDS demanded for more professors and students of color, for women’s liberation and queer liberation, and for UNF to become a sanctuary campus for immigrants and Muslims, just to name a few.
The protest began at the green, then members of SDS marched to President Delaney’s office to deliver him a letter personally. Delaney never came out and the letter was left taped to the door.
At the green, several students spoke about raising the minimum wage, re-packaging extra food from the cafe to be sent to those in need and protesting against the wall President Donald Trump intends to build.
“No ban, no wall, sanctuary for all,” was one chant that began early in the rally. “Here comes the working class, Donald Trump you’re an ass,” was another.
Photo by Pierce Turner
SDS member John Clarke spoke about the goals of the rally.
“Education and awareness are the expected goals. We want this to be an ongoing resistance rather than just one protest,” said Clarke.
Some students stood by showing their support for Trump and his policies.
“I am all for [immigrants] coming over in a legal fashion, but if they want to be here without proper papers and without a visa, then I would like them to get those,” said Julian Cinca, junior, Spanish major.
Photo by Pierce Turner
A member of SDS, Ryan McClure doesn’t expect Delaney to respond well to their demands based on his past political career.
“If [President Delaney] does not respond the way we were looking for him to, we are going to continue to build the struggle and continue to make his last year a little more difficult than he thought it would be,” McClure said outside Delaney’s office.
List of demands
- Designate UNF as a sanctuary campus
- Enact in its entirety the calls listed in the petition to make UNF a sanctuary campus crafted by Dr. Mann and Dr. Phills
- Ban President Trump and his administration from visiting the campus
- Diversity and Culture
- Further diversify the faculty & staff and student body
- Increase the amount of institutional aid that is available for students of color
- Remove the Cultural Diversity exemption from the General Education Program
- Include a mandatory Power and Privilege session during orientation
- Prioritize a free and open education over the university’s political agenda
- Address the seriousness of mental health issues
- Require safe space training for all professors
- Create a safer, sex positive environment on campus
- Require a consent course for all incoming students
- Make it a requirement to include sexual assault charges on the transcripts of any student found guilty of committing sexual assault (on or off campus)
- Provide a living wage for all staff ($15)
- Divest from any and all companies that are not aligned with our core values
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Joel Hall • Jun 16, 2017 at 7:33 am
I get routine calls from campus alumni association asking me to donate to the school. If they cave even a bit into this nonsense they won’t ever see a cent from me.
Carnjus McBasketball • Mar 14, 2017 at 12:23 pm
The SDS is Actually Communist-Facist! “Everything must be Equal” according to their demands.. Absurd. And the best part- they want to BAN President Trump- who just committed $25 Billion to Black Colleges eclipsing what Obama gave over his 8 years… And UNF openly welcomed that Traitor Obama in October at the VERY time he was Spying on Donald Trump to try and find any Dirt before the Election according to the Wikileaks Vault 7 disclosure! That scandal is 10 times Worse than Watergate! This “Group” has Zero chance at Success in Life. They would Honestly be better off in a Socialist or Communist Country, because they are Not Democratic, and Definitely not American!
GW • Mar 2, 2017 at 11:10 am
Students for a DEMOCRATIC Society DEMAND that a democratically elected official be banned. The left is doomed thanks to groups like this, haha.
Austin G • Mar 2, 2017 at 12:44 am
Lol Liberal students pretending they want an “equal” and “fair” campus actually just want a blindly democratic campus. Simply ignorant. Yeah, lets ban the president from the campus. That totally “fair” to all those republican students to didn’t pitch a fit about Obama coming to campus. Demand more diversity in professors? Do you expect UNF to just hire more? They won’t have the money to with all those classes and seminars you want to be made mandatory, unless of course you are okay with tuition skyrocketing and putting that much more stress on students. Instead, they will have to fire professors to replace them. You suggesting they fire teachers because they are white? Doesn’t sound real “equal” to me. Think about the consequences of your “demands” before you just go on a blind social-justice tangent. Morons.
Chris Barker • Mar 1, 2017 at 10:31 pm
Why is there no reference to the guy that was yelling “White Power!” and giving Nazi salutes?
Dennis Benson • Mar 1, 2017 at 10:27 pm
So here we go again. These folks read in their history books about the sixties and the revolution that took place. Let me say this. You don’t want to go there again.
Ashley • Mar 1, 2017 at 9:24 pm
I wish The Spinnaker gave these people zero attention/no story. (Although I know they should.) These ignorant kids deserve only to be ignored for their ridiculous demands. Talk about acting priveledged. How can these students possibly think they can snap their fingers at the dean of a University and expect change “or else they’ll make his final days difficult.” The reason UNF has flourished in recent years is BECAUSE of our dean. Pay no attention to them and report on those at UNF who are actually making a difference. There are too many incredible kids on that campus who we want to read about :)! Dont give these fools anymore attention than we already have.
Charlemagne • Mar 1, 2017 at 9:11 pm
Cucks
Likeonions • Mar 1, 2017 at 6:21 pm
I don’t think they realize that they are acting like fascists.
Alek • Mar 1, 2017 at 5:31 pm
As an alumni I am embarrassed by this. Their demands are ridiculous and have no real justification.
Please make history or the humanities classes a larger part of the mandatory curriculum, so maybe students will understand why these demands are so counterproductive.
Is our faculty riddled with socialists? It didn’t seem that way when I went there but now I am concerned.
Nicky G • Mar 1, 2017 at 4:17 pm
President Delaney, please pay no attention to these people. As a “diverse” student, I am happy just the way this school is and I would like this school not to cater to identity politics. Please notice that they “demanded” these things and not simply asked or when through the student government to have these voted on. Also other students should have a say when it comes to these things. Things like these simply cannot just be done instantly as these are things that would radically change UNF to current past and future students.
J • Mar 1, 2017 at 2:51 pm
Freaking idiots…
Steve Barnossi • Mar 1, 2017 at 1:53 pm
This is ridiculous. Let’s take a look at some of these “demands” that these poor triggered SJW babies are making.
1. Designate UNF as a sanctuary campus
-So you want to welcome people who shouldn’t be in this country in the first place?
2. Enact in its entirety the calls listed in the petition to make UNF a sanctuary campus crafted by Dr. Mann and Dr. Phills
-See #1.
3. Ban President Trump and his administration from visiting the campus
-So you want to ban the president of the United States from visiting because you disagree with him? Hate to break it to you, snowflakes. The world doesn’t work like that.
8. Include a mandatory Power and Privilege session during orientation
– More of the privilege bullshit? Really? Privilege is a bogus SJW construct, nothing more and nothing less.
Prioritize a free and open education over the university’s political agenda
9. Address the seriousness of mental health issues
– This one I actually agree with. Mental health is often undervalued and its importance understated.
10. Require a consent course for all incoming students
– Of all the demands on this list, this is definitely the best and the one that needs to happen the most.
11. Make it a requirement to include sexual assault charges on the transcripts of any student found guilty of committing sexual assault (on or off campus)
– Agreed.
12. Provide a living wage for all staff ($15)
– Someone doesn’t understand basic economics…