Recent articles about student activism, including Kim Wilmath's "SDS gives heart to Machen," have used the term "student protesters" to describe any form of advocacy on campus. Activism is not always protesting, and I think the use of this term either shows oversight or a biased opinion on the part of Alligator reporters.
When local members of United Students Against Sweatshops presented Bernie Machen with a Valentine's Day card, it was not a protest. The letter within the valentine advised the UF administration to work with this group and the Workers Rights Consortium to ultimately ensure that UF apparel would no longer be made in sweatshops.
This was not a protest in the sense that the Alligator uses the term. This publication portrays protest as an unruly, unorganized and often arbitrarily directed action - see Friday's editorial cartoon.
This was advocacy. These groups are advocating for humane conditions in the factories where UF apparel is made. They are promoting that the workers making clothing with the UF logo on it are treated fairly.
The continued use of "student protesting" for this kind of activism obviously illustrates how reporters at the Alligator are less concerned with informing citizens than they are at protesting student activism, which begs the question: Who are the real "student protesters?"
