Campus protest or student protest is a form of

student activism Student activism or campus activism is work by students to cause political, environmental, economic, or social change. Although often focused on schools, curriculum, and educational funding, student groups have influenced greater political e ...

that takes the form of

protest A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration or remonstrance) is a public expression of objection, disapproval or dissent towards an idea or action, typically a political one. Protests can be thought of as acts of coopera ...

at university

campuses A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a college campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls, student centers or dining halls, and park-li ...

. Such protests encompass a wide range of activities that indicate

student A student is a person enrolled in a school or other educational institution. In the United Kingdom and most commonwealth countries, a "student" attends a secondary school or higher (e.g., college or university); those in primary or eleme ...

dissatisfaction with a given

political Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studie ...

academics An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, f ...

issue and mobilization to communicate this dissatisfaction to the authorities (university or civil or both) and

society A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Soc ...

in general and hopefully remedy the problem.

Protest A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration or remonstrance) is a public expression of objection, disapproval or dissent towards an idea or action, typically a political one. Protests can be thought of as acts of coopera ...

forms include but are not limited to: sit-ins, occupations of university offices or buildings, strikes etc. More extreme forms include

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and ...

such as the case of

Jan Palach Jan Palach (; 11 August 1948 – 19 January 1969) was a Czech student of history and political economics at Charles University in Prague. His self-immolation was a political protest against the end of the Prague Spring resulting from the 1968 i ...

's, and Jan Zajíc's protests against the end of the

Prague Spring The Prague Spring ( cs, Pražské jaro, sk, Pražská jar) was a period of political liberalization and mass protest in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. It began on 5 January 1968, when reformist Alexander Dubček was elected First Se ...

and Kostas Georgakis' protest against the

Greek military junta of 1967–1974 The Greek junta or Regime of the Colonels, . Also known within Greece as just the Junta ( el, η Χούντα, i Choúnta, links=no, ), the Dictatorship ( el, η Δικτατορία, i Diktatoría, links=no, ) or the Seven Years ( el, η Ε ...

.. Quote: ''During the years of dictatorship in Greece (1967–1974) many Corfiots were enlisted in resistance groups, but the case of Kostas Georgakis is unique in the whole of Greece. The 22 year-old Corfiot student of geology with an act of self-sacrifice and a spirit of dynamic protest, which could not bear to see Greece under the military regime, set himself on fire the first morning hours of 19th September 1970 in the Matteoti Sq. in the Italian city of Genoa. For security reasons his body was buried in Corfu four months later, his self-sacrifice though, a rare event for that time, caused international sensation and was considered one of the most important resistance acts of that period. Later the Hellenic State and his homeland Corfu honoured the man, who with his life became a symbol of resistance and patriotism, herald of the students' sacrifice in Polytechnion in 1973''

History

In the West, student protests such as strikes date to the early days of universities in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

, with some of the earliest being the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

strike of 1209, and the

University of Paris strike of 1229 The University of Paris strike of 1229 was caused by the deaths of a number of students in punishing a student riot. The students protested with a "dispersion", or student strike, which lasted more than two years and led to a number of reforms of ...

, which lasted two years. More widespread student demonstrations occurred in 19th century Europe, for example in

Imperial Russia The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. T ...

. In 1930s, some Polish students protested against anti-Semitic ghetto benches legislation. In the second half of the 20th century, significant demonstrations almost-simultaneously in many countries: the

May 1968 events Beginning in May 1968, a period of civil unrest occurred throughout France, lasting some seven weeks and punctuated by demonstrations, general strikes, as well as the occupation of universities and factories. At the height of events, which h ...

in France began as a series of student strikes; Polish political crisis that occurred the same year also saw a major student activism; and the

Mexican Movement of 1968 The Mexican Movement of 1968, known as the Movimiento Estudiantil (''student movement'') was a social movement that happened in Mexico in 1968. A broad coalition of students from Mexico's leading universities garnered widespread public support f ...

also started with students. The largest student strike in the history of the United States occurred in May and June 1970, in the aftermath of the American invasion of Cambodia and the killings of student protesters at

Kent State University Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in A ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The s ...

. An estimated four million students at more than 450 universities, colleges and high schools participated in what became known as the Student Strike of 1970. It has been argued that student strikes and activism have a similarly long history in Confucian Asia.

Participation and issues

Early studies of campus protests conducted in the United States in the mid-1960s suggested that students who were more likely to take part in the protests tended to come from

middle class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Co ...

and

upper middle class In sociology, the upper middle class is the social group constituted by higher status members of the middle class. This is in contrast to the term '' lower middle class'', which is used for the group at the opposite end of the middle-class stra ...

backgrounds, major in

social science Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of soc ...

s and

humanities Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture. In the Renaissance, the term contrasted with divinity and referred to what is now called classics, the main area of secular study in universities at the ti ...

, and come from families with liberal political views. Later studies from early 1970s, however, suggested that participation in protests was broader, through still more likely for students from social sciences and humanities than more vocational-oriented fields like economy or engineering. Student protesters were also more likely to describe themselves as having liberal or centrist political beliefs, and feeling politically alienated, lacking confidence in the party system and public officials. Early campus protests in the United States were described as left-leaning and

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and ...

. More recent research shares a similar view, suggesting that right-leaning, conservative students and faculty are less likely to organize or join campus protests. A study of campus protests in the United States in the early 1990s identified major themes for approximately 60% of over two hundred incidents covered by media as multiculturalism and identity struggle, or in more detail as racial and ethnic struggle, women's concerns, or gay rights activities and represent what recent scholars have described both affectionately and pejoratively as " culture/cultural wars," "campus wars," "multicultural unrest," or "identity politics"... The remaining examples of student protest concerned funding (including tuition concerns),

governance Governance is the process of interactions through the laws, norms, power or language of an organized society over a social system (family, tribe, formal or informal organization, a territory or across territories). It is done by the govern ...

world affairs ''World Affairs'' is an American quarterly journal covering international relations. At one time, it was an official publication of the American Peace Society. The magazine has been published since 1837 and was re-launched in January 2008 as a new ...

, and environmental causes". While less common, protests similar to campus protests can also happen at secondary-level education facilities, like high schools.

Forms

Repertoire of contention Repertoire of contention refers, in social movement theory, to the set of various protest-related tools and actions available to a movement or related organization in a given time frame. The historian Charles Tilly, who brought the concept into ...

in campus protests can take various forms, from peaceful

sit-in A sit-in or sit-down is a form of direct action that involves one or more people occupying an area for a protest, often to promote political, social, or economic change. The protestors gather conspicuously in a space or building, refusing to m ...

s, marches,

teach-in A teach-in is similar to a general educational forum on any complicated issue, usually an issue involving current political affairs. The main difference between a teach-in and a seminar is the refusal to limit the discussion to a specific time f ...

s, to more active forms that can spread off-campus and include violent clashes with the authorities. Campus protests can also involve faculty members participating in them in addition to students, through protests led by or organized by faculty, rather than students, are a minority. Just like students can worry about being expelled for participation in the protests, some faculty members are concerned about their job security if they were to become involved in such incidents. A common tactic of student protest is to go on strike (sometimes called a

boycott A boycott is an act of nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, person, organization, or country as an expression of protest. It is usually for moral, social, political, or environmental reasons. The purpose of a boycott is to inflict ...

of classes), which occurs when students enrolled at a teaching institution such as a

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compuls ...

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...

university A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, ...

refuse to go to class. It is meant to resemble

strike action Strike action, also called labor strike, labour strike, or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became common during the ...

by organized labour. Whereas a normal strike is intended to inflict economic damage to an employer, a student strike is more of a logistical threat: the concerned institution or government cannot afford to have a large number of students simultaneously fail to graduate. The term "student strike" has been criticized as inaccurate by some unions and commentators in the

news media The news media or news industry are forms of mass media that focus on delivering news to the general public or a target public. These include news agencies, print media (newspapers, news magazines), broadcast news (radio and television), and ...

. These groups have indicated that they believe the term

is more accurate. Student protests can often spread off-campus and grow in scale, mobilizing off campus activists and organizations, for example the 2014 Hong Kong class boycott campaign led to the city-wide

2014 Hong Kong protests A series of sit-in street protests, often called the Umbrella Revolution and sometimes used interchangeably with Umbrella Movement, or Occupy Movement, occurred in Hong Kong from 26 September to 15 December 2014. The protests began after t ...

Response and aftermath

Over time, university tolerance of campus protests have grown; while protests occurred before the 20th century they were more likely to be "crushed... with an iron fist... by university leaders" than by mid-20th century, when they have become much more common and tolerated. By the early 21st century, the university response to campus protest in the United States is much more likely to be negotiations, and willingness to yield at least to some of the student demands. There was a resurgence of student activism in the United States in 2015. In Germany, tuition in public universities were abolished in response to student protests between 2006-2012.) University response to student activism and campus protests can still be much harsher in less liberal countries like China or Taiwan. In 1980 student protests in South Korea were violently suppressed by the military (the

Gwangju Uprising The Gwangju Uprising was a popular uprising in the city of Gwangju, South Korea, from May 18 to May 27, 1980, which pitted local, armed citizens against soldiers and police of the South Korean government. The event is sometimes called 5·18 (Ma ...

). As recently as in 1989 a large scale student demonstration in China that moved off-campus, the

1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre The Tiananmen Square protests, known in Chinese as the June Fourth Incident (), were student-led demonstrations held in Tiananmen Square, Beijing during 1989. In what is known as the Tiananmen Square Massacre, or in Chinese the June Fourt ...

, was met with deadly force.

Examples

*2022 Universidad Autónoma de Querétaro (Querétaro, México) strike and occupation *2022 Huntington High School walkout *2021 Newport High School Student Demonstration * 2021 Boğaziçi University protests * 2021 Columbia University strike * 2020 Thai protests * 2019-2020 Iraq student protests^Ref.? * 2019 JNU Protests in New Delhi – India^Ref.? * 2018-2020 "Fridays for Future" School strike for climate – global * 2018 Bangladesh road safety protests * 2018 "

March for Our Lives March for Our Lives (MFOL) was a student-led demonstration in support of gun control legislation. It took place in Washington, D.C., on March 24, 2018, with over 880 sibling events throughout the United States and around the world, and wa ...

" student protest – United States * 2017–18 Mahatma Gandhi Central University protests – India * 2017–18 Iranian protests * 2017 Jallikattu protests – India * 2016 SATs Strike protest against tests for 6 and 7 year olds – UK * 2016 Boston Public School students walkout in protest of budget cuts – United States^Ref.? * 2016 Joint Student protests in Central Universities India^Ref.? * 2016 JNU Student Protests in New Delhi – India^Ref.? * 2015 " Fees Must Fall" – South Africa * 2015 University of Missouri protests – United States * 2015 Bangladesh student protests * 2015 University of Amsterdam Bungehuis and Maagdenhuis Occupations – Netherlands * 2014 Jadavpur University protests – India * 2014 Hong Kong student protest for democracy * 2014 Sunflower Student Movement – Taiwan *

2014 Iguala mass kidnapping On September 26, 2014, forty-three male students disappeared from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers' College after being forcibly abducted in Iguala, Guerrero, Mexico. They were allegedly taken into custody by local police officers from Iguala a ...

– Mexico * 2012 Quebec student protests – Canada * 2012 Valencia student protests * 2011 student protests in Chile * 2010 University of Puerto Rico Strike * 2010 UK student protests *

2008 Greek riots The 2008 Greek riots started on 6 December 2008, when Alexandros Grigoropoulos ( el, Αλέξανδρος Γρηγορόπουλος), a 15-year-old Greek student, was killed by a special officer in Exarcheia district of central Athens. The kill ...

* 2007 Dutch pupil strike * 2006 student protests in Chile * 2006 student uprising in Iran * 2005 Quebec student protests – Canada * July 1999 Iran student protests *

1996–1997 protests in Serbia In the winter of 1996–1997, university students and Serbian opposition parties organized a series of peaceful protests in the Republic of Serbia (then part of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia) in response to electoral fraud attempted by the ...

* 1996 Quebec student protests – Canada *

- China * 1989 Anti-SAP riots - Nigeria * 1980 student protests in Kabul - Afghanistan * 1978 "Ali Must Go" protests – Nigeria * 1976-77 Soweto uprising – South Africa * November 1973 Athens Polytechnic uprising – Greece * 1971 Diliman Commune – Philippines * 1970-1972 Huelga schools, Houston – United States * 1970 Student Strike – United States *

1968 Protests The protests of 1968 comprised a worldwide escalation of social conflicts, predominantly characterized by popular rebellions against state militaries and the bureaucracies. In the United States, these protests marked a turning point for the ci ...

** 1968–69 Japanese university protests ** Third World Liberation Front strikes of 1968-1969 – United States **

1968 student demonstrations in Yugoslavia Student protests were held in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, as the first mass protest in Yugoslavia after World War II. Protests also broke out in other capitals of Yugoslav republics — Sarajevo, Zagreb and Ljubljana — but they were smaller and shor ...

** May 1968 uprisings – France ** 1968 protests in Poland ** 1968 East L.A. walkouts – United States * 1965 Anti-Hindi agitations of Tamil Nadu - India * 1964-65 U.C. Berkeley Free Speech Movement – United States * 1960 Anpo protests - Japan * 1956 Bucharest student movement – Romania * 1901-1904 Września children strike – Poland * 1766 Butter rebellion at Harvard University – United States *

1229 University of Paris strike The University of Paris strike of 1229 was caused by the deaths of a number of students in punishing a student riot. The students protested with a "dispersion", or student strike, which lasted more than two years and led to a number of reforms of ...

– France

References

{{Reflist

External links

Bloodiest Student Protests
– slideshow by ''Life'' magazine
Occupy Wall Street Protests Shifting to College Campuses
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