Boston College administrators required organizers of a Feb. 13 pro-Palestinian demonstration to revise and remove portions of their speeches, disclose speakers’ identities, and refrain from using amplified sound and “public facing” advertising before granting approval to demonstrate on campus, according to email exchanges obtained by The Heights.
Boston College students and faculty protested Thursday, condemning activism suppression, demanding investment transparency, and criticizing BC’s silence on Gaza. Speakers called for divestment and accused the administration of stifling student rights.
Nick Voll’s recent op-ed, “BC Alum and U.S. Senator Ed Markey’s Inauguration Absence Was Undemocratic,” makes a number of disingenuous comparisons that merit correction.
Mr. Voll begins by acknowledging the January 6th riots as “attacks, which directly threatened the lives of several Capitol police officers and members of Congress.” He cites the “left-leaning” arguments that Donald Trump “questioned” the fair election (a generous term for the concerted campaign of proven falsehoods to undermine it) and leveraged his political office for personal gain.
Just two days later, President Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th president of the United States of America. BC’s most visible alumnus was noticeably absent from the ceremonies, presumably mourning the demise of his once proud basketball program. Markey, along with several other members of the Massachusetts delegation, including U.S. Representatives Bill Keating and Ayanna Pressley, consciously decided not to attend Trump’s inauguration.
So, in this time of strife and action, why does it often feel like Boston College is incapable of taking action? In my experience, students here seem to believe there are many culprits to our problem of indifference—usually those with opposing viewpoints. And both sides point a finger at cancel culture.
Members of CJBC and a crowd of students gathered at the entrance of O’Neill Library for the protest on Tuesday night.
The frontlines of the American “Culture War” continue to grow, as school districts across the country sweep books off the shelves amid pressure from parents, the state, or school boards.
Boston College needs to ease its policies and restrictions on student demonstration to better support its students’ free speech rights.
One of Chelsea Burns’ professors was told that talking about race in class makes students uncomfortable, Burns said to the crowd on Stokes Lawn Monday evening. Avoidance of racial discussions, though, is harmful to the Boston College community, according to Burns.
Dozens of students protested on Thursday demanding racial justice after no officers with the killing of Breonna Taylor.
