Individuals associated with Occupy Boston are at it again. This time, as many other groups have already done, they are marching to protest student debt. The group stopped by Bank of America and the Harvard Club to voice their displeasure with corporate greed, which they feel these organizations represent. The group chanted “Not just for the rich and white, education is a right”. Members of the group have the same old story that has been echoed time and again across the nation. Breaking news just in, student debt has surpassed the one trillion dollar mark, there are no jobs, and school is too expensive. Oh yes, and the government is eliminating grant money to bail out corporate giants. I think that just about covers it.
Is this really what protestors continue to waste their time with? It is not that tough to realize that even if 2 million people marched on the White House it most likely would not affect the price of college, and student debt would not be forgiven. Here is an idea. If someone wants free education, all they have to do is serve their country for four years and then come back and take advantage of G.I. Bill benefits. This is alluded to in the article, so I know at least some people in the group understand the concept.
I really just do not grasp the thought process with this group and what they think these protests are actually going to achieve. Yes the protests raise awareness. Yes college probably does cost too much. Mission accomplished, as the general public is now well aware of this. Now what? If these people spent half as much time working part time jobs as they did standing in the street and yelling, they could probably earn enough money that would allow them to borrow less money for school, and then their student debt would be less. Wow, there is an idea. Take responsibility and actions to improve your own life and situation instead of protesting for someone else to make things easier for you.
The ideas surrounding corporate bail out and higher taxes for the wealthy are ridiculous as well. It is one opinion that the economy would be even worse if the government had not intervened where they had with corporations in this country. And, why should wealthy people be taxed more? Any single person in this country has the opportunity to obtain wealth. It is true, that not everyone has equal resources to start, but everyone has a chance. Simply because one person made the most of opportunities and made themselves successful, does not mean that they should be taxed at a higher rate in order to better support the people wasting time protesting everyday instead of pursuing opportunities that could improve their own lives.
Again, time to step up and take responsibility for yourselves protestors. No one can make your situation better except for you.
Amen to this post. I agree. I was fortunate enough to have my soccer scholarship/parents pay for my undergraduate education. I understand not everyone is lucky enough to come out of their undergraduate education with no debt as I did. However beyond my bachelors, I am now on my own. I earned my Master's and currently earning my doctorate by working my way through school in addition to taking out some student loans. This is my choice and I knew what I was getting into when taking out those loans. I do know some students who's wealthy parents pay for any and all schooling the student chooses to endure. While I am jealous, I do not protest about that and the cost of education and having to take out loans to afford it because you know what? Life is not always fair.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if I could disagree more. I cannot prescribe to the pick yourself up from the bootstraps mentality that makes it easy for us to dismiss the very real social and political landscape that dictates the ability of the haves and the have nots. There are probably folks at the Occupy Protests who could work a little harder, but the argument that they present is not lost because of this fact. I mean how would anyone protest if they had to be at work all day? Kidding...
ReplyDeleteThese people are voicing frustration. Some understand the argument more than others, but they are all frustrated. They are frustrated that corporate greed and legislation to support it are rampant. They are frustrated that there are some people who can afford a college education, and some who can't. These are real concerns for many people that should not be discounted. I refuse to believe that these people are simply looking for handouts as this blog post implies. I think they are just looking for a fair shot.
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ReplyDeleteIt is not possible to pick one's self up by the bootstraps when a person does not have boots. I agree with B. Jacobson who said that there is a "very real social and political landscape" that affects certain people's ability to jump on the bandwagon and ride it to financial success.
ReplyDeleteI recognize my privilege when it comes to educational access and financial flexibility. My parents (and one set of my grandparents) had the financial capacity to save money for my college education. My father grew up in a poor family and worked his way into the middle class. I benefited from his hard work. Nevertheless, I do not kid myself into thinking that if he had been African American, or Latino, that he would have had the same opportunities that he did because he was White (and a veteran of World War II). From the other side of the spectrum, my mother came from an upper middle class family, and I benefited from her hard work too. Her younger brother was "loaned" the family's fortune to continue running the family business when her father died, so she set out on her own to build a life as an independent, single woman. As was the case with my father, it is difficult to say whether she would have held the high-paying administrative nursing positions that she held had she been African American or Latina. However, given that both of my parents entered the workforce in the early 1950s, it would be a fair assumption to say that their lives, careers, and earning power would have been significantly and negatively impacted had they not been members of the dominant culture. Without the sheer luck of the family situation into which I was born, I might not be a late-blooming doctoral student today.
B. Jacobson, I disagree that there are some people who can afford college and some who cannot. Grants and loans make college affordable, and an option, to everyone. Are loans the best option? Of course not, but they ARE an option.
ReplyDeleteTwo things I saw in the news I think we might find interesting related to this blog. The first is the latest quote by NYC Major Michael Bloomberg that reflects my take on the Occupy movement as well, “My personal view is, why don’t you get out there and try to do something about the things that you don’t like, create the jobs that we are lacking, rather than just yell and scream. But if you want to yell and scream, we’ll make sure you can do it.”
ReplyDeleteYes, I was raised by survivors of the Kansas dust storms and depression of the 1930s, and WWII, so I have the “boot strap” mentality, even if I didn’t think bailing out Wall Street was the best move in the first place. It is one of our rights at U.S. citizens, however, to be able to voice our opinions and peacefully assemble, so I would continue to work hard so others can Occupy to their heart’s content. I may not agree with the message but I respect their right to voice it.
The other piece of news is more disturbing yet not surprising. Reports of crime amongst the Occupy Wall Street protesters are rising as more people take advantage of the ambiguous and less organized living situation that is the Occupy movement. In particular, this week a park occupant was charged with rape and sexual abuse. The concern is that as Occupy participants lean more towards distrust of the authority figures, such as the politicians and police, the crowd may begin to take matters into it’s own hands. Such a herd mentality could lead to vigilante justice, which is not something that would help the Occupy cause.
Although the protesters may not have a coordinated message, the concept of organizing has long been lost in this country and awareness of citizen discontent is more important to me. The pick yourself up by the bootstraps concept is rooted in avoidance of history, power, and privilege, which will not be addressed in this comment. However, I will say that historically, once again, student loans changed this country in terms of low income students being able to access education. Without access to money there would be no equity in education.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the sentiments of BJ, Robyn, and Yolanda here. The protestatons springing up all over the country are entirely legitimate, in that they represent a growing frustration with the socioeconomic and sociocultural status quos. The problem, of course, is that this frustration is unfocused and inchoate at present, and so picking the "1%" as a convenient target of their collective ills is a default protest strategy for lack of anything more clear.
ReplyDeletePublic protests have defined much of what makes our nation and way of life possible, I believe. Harkening back to the days of the American Revolution (a sort of "1%" protest against the self-serving English oligarchy that denied financial self-determination for the colonists) to the anti-slavery protests throughout the first half of the 1800s to the child labor abuse protests of the early 20th century, Women's Suffrage and Feminist movements throughout the 20th century to the Civil Rights, Anti-War and Environmentalist movements of the latter half of the 20th century, to the Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street protests of today, disaffected groups of Americans have clearly, loudly (and unfortunately, violently at times) stood up for deep principles for which they were willing to struggle and fight.
Would such sweeping changes as ending colonial rule, slavery, women's exclusion from societal decision-making processes, child labor abuse, more equal rights and education for folks of all races and colors, and some of the most egregious corporate environmental abuses have happened if ordinary citizens just shut up, worked hard for the existing system, and followed someone else's rules (for a brief history of American protest movements, see: http://www3.niu.edu/~td0raf1/history498/index.htm ).
I certainly don't believe all protest movements are equally valid, just, and/or ideally conducted. But it seems to me that movements that sprout in multiple and far-flung locations seemingly overnight (e.g. Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street) are expressing deeply-held concerns that our leaders-whether from the right or the left-need to carefully listen to and take heed of...if they want to remain elected, for one thing. The fact that some %40 or more of the nation's material wealth is concentrated among about 1% of its citizens is a rather incredible statistic, if you think about it. History has shown that no civilization/society can long endure with such a disproportionate distribution of power and resources, no matter what your political persuasion may be. However, to merely demonize such wealth & power holders for essentially being the best or luckiest at taking advantage of our current socioeconomic/political system seems especially misguided to me. In this sense, I agree with those who say that protestors really must be targeting our national policymakers (i.e. Washington D.C. leadership) with clearer messages on how to politically change how our financial and broad socioeconomic systems operate.
I wouldn't title myself as "political" by any means, but this sounds like a true Republican vs. Democratic feud at its finest.
ReplyDeleteAs a Democrat, I have to respectfully disagree with the assumptions of the parent post as well. The standpoint here simply being--there were a lot of pure "assumptions" and stereotypes associated with the language in the blog. The message I heard from reading the post was that all protesters are poor, uneducated, jobless, and wanting some sort of a "free ride." It would be extremely interesting to know the truths behind those assumptions. I'm willing to bet many are employed, and have "successful" lives. By successful, I'm meaning sufficient and happy. Since when does the term successful tie itself solely to the super-rich? I'm going to insert my own assumption--many of those protesters marched over after they got off work, and later returned to their happy and healthy families feeling better about contributing to a cause that meant something.
I've never personally participated in a protest, and yes, I'm sure there is some "annoyance" experienced by people against a cause (as our blogger appears to be). However, I don't believe [all] these Occupy protesters expect any sort of complete bail out or for things to all of a sudden become easier for them. They are "supporting" a perspective--maybe for themselves, maybe for their children, maybe just because they feel it's right. Without protests and freedom of speech, where do you think we'd be in terms of equal rights? Are those topics as easily dismissed? Probably not, so what's the true difference, and who has the right to say people can't stand in unison to fight for their opinions to matter?
Why it became an educational crisis?
ReplyDeleteWhy student was forced to demonstrations for his right of education?
Why student is concerned for the future? What a trouble!!!!!!?????? This and the state and marketplace need for graduates!
However, we must be optimistic in light of the Obama’s administration which is trying hardly to set the appropriate solutions to the issues of education in general and higher education in particular, and it is trying to find a suitable job opportunities for graduates, so I respect the administration of President Obama because they adopt the wisdom that says: (instead curse the darkness ignite a candle).
Thanks for every one for the amazing post and wonderful entries.
I disagree that the Occupy Protests "waste everyone's time." I am encouraged and thrilled by anything that gets people talking and engaging in open discourse. I am also relieved that the protesters do not view the issues they raise as hopeless causes without chance for any real or impactful change. I can't help but wonder if the media sometimes target individuals to interview who do not represent the movement in the best possible light which only serves to feed the idea that the protesters are just loafers looking for an easy ride.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your post. I have to disagree that Occupy Wall Street is a waste of time. While I do not completely get the message, nor do I think the students/protesters know their message, is a nice reminder that students and the people have the ability and desire to organize and stand up for something. I know I had my share of protest in by younger days (march for women's rights, protest the Iraq war, protest George Bush getting re-elected, etc). Protesting the things I felt passionate about gave me a voice that I had never experienced before.
ReplyDeleteI am glad the protestors are out there standing up for the things they believe in. I do think they are having an impact. The major banks in the US did not pass a recently proposed debit fee and my friends on Facebook are withdrawing their money from major bank accounts in an effort to support the protestors. I know student debt will not be eliminated any time soon, but at least people are addressing the student debt issue and thinking about alternatives.
Yeah! I love it when someone truly stirs the pot. I may have to post something about Reagan just to see what happens. (This is for my friends in the Denver Cohort)...
ReplyDeleteI agree and disagree with many of your points about loans and bootstraps. Loans are truly an option for many. As you stated in an earlier post many times folks with the most financial need also have access to the most loans. What you miss, or perhaps fail to consider is that financial aid, and the navigation thereof, requires a level of financial literacy that is not exactly a birthright in this country (much like not everyone is born with boots, let alone boots with straps). It should be obvious given some of the current economic "crisis" that financial literacy is an issue in this country.
I believe that everyone can succeed in this country. I also believe that one of the reasons this has been historically true is that we have in the past put into place systems that attempt to level the playing field. The fact is that some of us are given the ball at midfield with no defenders in front of us while others start at the goal line and have to drive the length of the field with no offensive line. See again leveling the playing field above (a progressive tax system is one way to do this).
Thank you Larry! Great response! Not all of us are given the boots to begin with. Some of us had to learn to raise the grain to feed the cow that the boot leather came from. I was a first-generation college student. My family did not have the financial literacy to be able to navigate the financial aid system. Luckily, my parents instilled in me from a young age that if I wanted to go to college, I'd better get good grades to get scholarships, because they wouldn't have the money to help me.
ReplyDeleteI realize that growing up where I did gave me a certain degree of privilege. If I had been an African American or Latino teen, would I have had that same opportunity? I think not. I did end up getting some scholarships. But I worked my way through school as well, with at least one, sometimes two jobs while attending full time. I ended up with a relatively small amount of student loan debt, which I was able to repay. But that was a long time ago. College didn't cost as much back then. Tuition costs are almost three times as much as when I went to school, so it's no wonder that students are graduating with so much debt.
We have also failed our students in the promises that society has made. The formula used to work that if you went to college and graduated, that you would find gainful employment upon graduation. These days, not so much. Our unemployment rate is horrible, and that, paired with massive amounts of student debt, gives students a VERY good reason to be protesting.
I'm lucky that I also learned how to tan a cow's hide and make those bootstraps, because no one else was going to do it for me. Others are not so lucky.