Mariah Joyce
Editor in Chief
In response to the increased incidents of harassment on Beall Avenue following the election of Donald Trump, College of Wooster students organized a silent protest last week.
Wooster’s protest, held on Friday, Nov. 11 at 12 p.m., joined many other such protests on college campuses across the country. The focus of Wooster’s demonstration was to show support for one another following several incidents of harassment on Beall Avenue, including firecrackers being set off and one instance in which someone in a car yelled “Grab her by the pussy!” at a female student.
“It’s easy to post and say people love and support you, but when you actually show using your body and your signs and your words that you have solidarity for one another it’s a lot more impactful,” said protest organizer Alina Karapandzich ’18. “I think it’s the first step to helping people overcome how afraid they are right now and angry and how betrayed they feel.”
Although she had never organized a protest like this before, Karapandzich said that she was talking to friends and peers about the need for such a demonstration and they encouraged her to jump in and make it happen. On Thursday, Nov. 10 she sent out an email advertising the protest and asking recipients to spread the word.
“Let’s show our community that we are united against such hate and that no matter who our president elect is, hate and bigotry will never be tolerated on our campus,” read the email. The email said that the protest would be silent, participants would link arms and line the sidewalks of Beall, and that everyone should keep the message peaceful.
At noon on Friday, students and other College community members lined the sidewalks of Beall, linking arms silently to show support for one another. Organizers and participants said they were impressed and overwhelmed by the response.
“I am really proud of Wooster students for showing up for this,” said Chadwick Smith ’17, who has organized several protests at Wooster himself. “I have never seen any protest on our campus with this many people.” Smith estimated that around 300 people showed up for the protest.
Drake Schwenke ’18, president of the conservative club The Wooster Right Wingers, expressed distaste for the harassment. “It’s obvious that [the protest] started as a reaction to street harassment,” said Schwenke. “We can’t condone that, at all. At all. Even the most staunch Trump supporter should not be behind any kind of behavior that incites violence or anything that’s disrespectful to anyone.”
Dean of Students Scott Brown said he was glad that community members were voicing their concerns. “My hope for this is that it gives many students and people in the community the chance to really express their concerns in a way that I hope is very constructive,” said Brown. “I applaud the student leaders and the courage of everybody who’s willing to stand up for what they believe in.”
Ultimately, Karapandzich said she was deeply gratified at the response. “I’ve never done something like this before, I’ve been a student leader but the support that I got just from a single email is incredible,” she said. “More importantly the support that we’re showing for one another with this is amazing, but I didn’t doubt for one second that they wouldn’t come out, because we have an amazing supportive community here.”
Wooster students are also contemplating further protests, including the possibility of a protest in downtown Wooster after Thanksgiving Break.
Jared Berg contributed reporting.