“I need some muscle”
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I’d say it’s more like liberal and progressive ideas colliding. There is overlap, but it’s not the same. Liberals lean towards the notion that there is, can, and should be a public sphere that is for all, while I’d suggest most progressives probably think that while that’s an ideal that we should strive for, it doesn’t really exist, especially if you’re poor, black, LBGQT, or a woman.
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I want more context from before the start of the video, but this video, and tweets from Concerned Students 1950, makes the protestors look asinine, which ironically demonstrates the futility of trying to control the media’s narratives about your movements. The media is nearly always going to be arrayed against you in the interests of white supremacy, big business, and the state.
There are times when you don’t want reporters around, but it’s hard for me to imagine why you wouldn’t want them at a time like this in your public encampment. In my experience, it’s generally a good idea to expel and obstruct undercover police who are only there to get pics of everyone’s faces and troll your meetings, but that doesn’t seem to be the case here.
Let’s hope the protestors form some kind of sensible response that is more than the usual liberal identity politics crap that vulnerable young people often fall for.
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Having a “safe space” in a “public space” is an oxymoron, as far as I can tell. You can’t have such a thing in such a place without by definition trampling on people’s rights.
What right does she (or, indeed, any of the students involved) have to physically assault another individual? What justification can there be to exercise force against another individual? They’re no protecting themselves from physical harm- they think they’re protecting themselves for a perceived potential threat (in the form of press they don’t like).
And you’re right- you can’t have your cake and eat it to. You can’t call for transparency and they create a (literal) opaque barrier. It’s hypocritical, at best.
This is a crowd of bullies bullying and should be treated as such.
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That space already exists. It’s inside your home.
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No, more that there is a myth of objectivity that exists, which papers over who actually benefits from the corporate-controlled media.
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because safe space is something liberal in conception?
Their dorm rooms? I bet they can fit a lot of protesters in one of those for a public meeting…
THIS…because just as with an extreme punishment mentality leaving the everyone blind…the entirely leftist “We want our safe space” mentality leads to this student reporter now being completely justified in claiming they assaulted him and marginalized him. He felt threatened by the calling of “muscle” and the mob mentality in front of him. He now has PTSD and need medication and disability. Also, every student pushing him back seemed by my observation to be white or black…He was Asian. Can they prove that they were not collectively being racist to him as an Asian student?
We need to hold to the middle ground and be rational with situations like this…unfortunately like when we see police officers abuse their power and instead of being the mature and in control adult in a situation, they instead loose their minds and someone is beaten or worse…this professor should ALSO have been the mature adult in the situation and maintained a level of control. Calmly talked to the students and say “He is a fellow student doing HIS job…let’s respect that and give him some time, allow him some access, and then he will leave us be.”
So, whatever happens in public is okay, because there is no expectation of safety in public?
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Nice try!
It isn’t a “try” it’s a serious question - the concept of public space is rather amorphous and changing. It’s eroding with more spaces becoming privatized. Plus, there is plenty of times when a university might restrict space on their campus, even of a public campus. Do we as non-students of this university have the same rights to the space that the students, who are paying their fees and tuition, have?
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You have a right to be free from violence, not from somebody videoing you in a public square. My rights end where your nose begins
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What about upskirt shots? That’s filming in public, but violates someone’s right to privacy, yeah? Again, we’re back to certain people not being able to be in public spaces because of harassment. Does a man’s right to free speech trump my right to walk down the street free from catcalling? Or does a black person have a right to walk down the street without being called a racial slur?
It’s really not so cut and dry. Which is my point about this woman’s actions and her criticism of the media more generally - that’s not about presenting an objective picture of what’s happening always. It can be, and that’s the ideal, but the way the media functions now, it’s pretty much not. And the location also calls into question the notion of this being a public space, too.
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I’m confused by the protestors - they set up a protest in a public space and then not only didn’t want public attention, but thought they could prevent it? I’m obviously missing something, but this makes less than no sense to me.
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So, everyone… is a college campus a public space, in the same way a town square is or the local city hall is?
I don’t know.
But if I had to guess, I’d say it has to do with the precedent set by the school itself.
Does the school regularly check IDs and whatnot to eject people that aren’t students/staff/faculty from the grounds? Or do they leave the gates open to the community in general? Because if they’re leaving the gates open… they’re public. In this case, it’s a state school (and not private). I’d guess (again…) that they have even less right to keep the public off the campus (though, keeping them out of the buildings is likely a thing).
Even then, this video is about the physical removal of non-violent individuals by an angry mob- and I can’t imagine that’s ok, ever.
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The situation, as far as I read it, is far more complex, than what you make out to be. The Professor was supporting the students who didn’t want to be filmed. There is a huge ongoing debate much better described in the LA Times ]1 The question of representation and owning your story is key for oppressed groups and any protest movements.
Obviously, a public space is a public space and 1st Amendment rights trump all. I would like to have a clear explanation why it’s ok for celebrities and multinationals to own their image (e.g. how would this encounter play out it the camp was in front of Disneyland, technically on public space but practically with Disney as a background to things unfolding) but not for a group who is fighting for recognition.
Why is it not ok for people not to want to be represented by the media?
Why can’t they insist on disseminating the image they want to disseminate?
Does taking a public stance automatically require you to be amenable to the media?
I don’t think that the answers to these questions are as clear cut as it is suggested here.
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I totally agree. I’m not convinced she was in the right, but I’m not convinced she’s in the wrong totally either.
But I’d guess that there would be times when they would lock down the campus - public or not, right? In general, my university library is open for visitors, except during finals. Of course, shutting out the public from GSU more generally would be impossible, because the campus is an urban campus and sprawls all over downtown at this point. I don’t know how integrated this campus is with the city, but I’d guess it’s more offset than GSU is. But I don’t know either way. Again, not cut and dry, I think.
I don’t know if I’d call this an angry mob, though.
Have you ever seen videos of how police handle those kinds of situations? Here is a link to remind you
Now, how you can compare that with this is beyond me. There are students who do not want to be filmed / photographed and have explicitly made that clear, they are supported by a Professor, whose job is to support her students. If anything the encounter is a battle for personal space. A photographer is invading students’ personal space, admittedly while they are in a public space, and the kids are trying to not comply.
I can imagine many situations in which I wouldn’t want my images taken, many of them public situations of protest.
