Student activism

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Student activism is work done by students to effect political or societal change. It has often focused on making changes in schools, such as increasing student influence over curriculum or improving educational funding, but in some settings, student groups have had a major role in broader political events. For example, student groups in many countries have played leading roles in forcing change in governments they viewed as oppressive.

Indonesia

At many key points in Indonesia's history, university student groups have had a defining impact on the course of events. These groups have repeatedly been the first groups to stage street demonstrations calling for governmental change, and other organizations from across the political spectrum have sought to align themselves with student groups.

During the political turmoil of the 1960s, right-wing student groups staged demonstrations calling for then-President Sukarno to eliminated alleged Communists from his government, and later demanding that he resign. Sukarno did step down in 1967, and was replaced by Army general Suharto.

Student groups also played a key role in Suharto's 1998 fall by initiating large demonstrations that gave voice to widespread popular discontent with the president. High school and university students in Jakarta, Yogyakarta, Medan, and elsewhere were some of the first groups willing to speak out publically against the military government. Student groups were a key part of the political scene during this period. For example, upon taking office after Suharto stepped down, B.J. Habibie made numerous mostly unsuccessful overtures to placate the student groups that had brought down his predecessor, meeting with student leaders and the families of students killed by security forces during demonstrations.

References

• O'Rourke, Kevin. 2002. Reformasi: the struggle for power in post-Soeharto Indonesia. Crows Nest, NSW: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1865087548.
  • Details the role of student groups in Suharto's fall, with especially good on-scene details of events in Jakarta in 1997 and 1998.

The United States

In the United States, student activism is often understood as a form of youth activism that is specifically oriented toward change in the American educational system. Movements in this area vary widely in subject, size, and success, with all kinds of students in all kinds of educational settings participating. Popular issues include student voice, student rights, school funding, anti-racism in education, tuition increases (in colleges), and many other areas.

Student activism in the United States dates to the beginning of public education, if not before. The best early historical documentation comes from the 1930s. The American Youth Congress was a student-led organization in Washington, DC, which lobbied the US Congress against racial discrimination and for youth programs. It was heavily supported by First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.

The 1960s saw student activists gaining increased political prominence. One highlight of this period was Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), a student-led organization that focused on schools as a social agent that simultaneously oppresses and potentially uplifts society. SDS eventually spun off the Weather Underground. Another successful group was Ann Arbor Youth Liberation, which featured students calling for an end to state-led education. Also notable was the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, which fought against racism and for integration of public schools across the US. These specific organizations closed in the mid-1970s.

American society saw an increase in student activism again in the 1990s with the ushering in of the neoliberal policies of Bill Clinton. The popular education reform movement has led to an resurgence of populist student activism against standardized teaching and testing, as well as more complex issues, including rallying against the military/industrial/prison complex and the influence of the military and corporations in education. There is also increased emphasis on ensuring that changes that are made are sustainable, by pushing for better education funding and policy or leadership changes that engage students as decision-makers in schools. Major contemporary campaigns include work for better funding of public schools and against increased tuitions at colleges or the use of sweatshop labor in manufacturing school apparel.

See also

• Student Activism Council
• Student-led school change
• Meaningful student involvement
• Some instrumental figures:
  • Henry Giroux
  • William Upski Wimsatt
• Organizations:
  • Soundout.org Student Activism Map
  • National Youth Rights Association
  • The Freechild Project
  • At The Table
  • Campus Activism
  • Center for Student Developed Education Policy
  • Funders Collaborative on Youth Organizing
  • ACTivist Magazine
  • NYPIRG (the New York Public Interest Research Group)
  • Student Environmental Action Coalition
  • United Students Against Sweatshops

References

• Brax, Ralph S. "The first student movement." Port Washington, NY : Kennikat Press, 1980.
• Carson, Claybourne. "In Struggle, SNCC and the Black Awakening of the 1960's." Cambridge Massachusetts: Harvard University Press., 1981
• Cohen, Robert. "When the old left was young." New York : Oxford University Press, 1993.
• Fletcher, Adam. "Meaningful Student Involvement Series." The Freechild Project, 2004.
• Kreider, Aaron ed. "The SEAC Organizing Guide." Student Environmental Action Coalition, 2004.
• Loeb, Paul. "Generation at the Crossroads: Apathy and Action on the American Campus." New Brunswick, N.J. : Rutgers University Press, 1994.
• McGhan, Barry. "The Student Movement: Where do you stand?" Time Magazine, 1971.
• Sale, Kirkpatrick. "SDS: Ten Years Towards a Revolution." New York, Random House, 1973.
• Students for a Democratic Society. "Port Huron Statement." Author, 1962.
• Vellela, Tony. "New Voices: Student Activism in the 80s and 90s." Boston, MA: South End Press, 1988.
• What Kids Can Do. "More Than Service: Philadelphia Students Join a Union to Improve Their Schools. http://www.whatkidscando.org/PhilaUnion.pdf" Author, 2002.
• What Kids Can Do. "Taking Democracy In Hand: Youth Action For Educational Change in the San Francisco Bay Area.