As her Northwestern University course “Social Inequality: Race, Class & Power” wound down for the semester, Beth Redbird decided to let the students choose the topic of the final unit. They settled on a contentious issue: immigration.
So Ms. Redbird, an assistant professor of sociology, invited a representative from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, to speak to the class on Tuesday. She wanted the representative to answer students’ questions about the immigration system, and she had also invited an undocumented immigrant to speak later in the week.
Because of the sensitivity of the topic, Ms. Redbird gave students the option to skip the lecture and listen to a recording of it later. Some, though, were eager to “grill” the ICE officer.
As it turned out, the ICE representative, Manda Walters, never got to speak. Protesters compelled her to leave when they entered the classroom chanting, “ICE is for destruction, no need for discussion!”
Protests of controversial speakers, sometimes turning violent, have been a persistent problem on college campuses in recent months, with observers disagreeing on how to both ensure students’ safety and uphold the right to free speech. But the Northwestern incident stands apart from past incidents because of where it happened: in a classroom, during a class. And because the protest disrupted instruction, condemnations of it have been swift and harsh.
Among the most aggrieved parties were the students in Ms. Redbird’s class. “We were like, We’re gonna ask them all these questions, get the truth,” Nefertari Bilal, a freshman, told The Chronicle. “We’re not gonna make it easy for them. We were looking forward to that. But of course that plan was totally dashed by the protesters.”
The class began at 3:30 p.m. in Harris Hall. It was larger than the usual 85-person lecture because students had invited others who were interested in the discussion. About 100 protesters gathered outside the building, enough that administrators and the chief of the campus police department showed up. Some were told by administrators that they could enter the classroom if they didn’t disrupt the talk, according to a report in The Daily Northwestern, the campus newspaper.
Our educational rights were violated in that moment, and I just questioned what was actually accomplished through this protest.
About 30 protesters entered, Ms. Bilal estimated, after which the speaker left. Kate Lee, a fifth-year senior in the class, said they later shouted at and questioned the professor. Ms. Bilal said some students left the classroom crying.
“We chose to be in that classroom, and as students we’re paying for the class,” Ms. Lee said. “Our educational rights were violated in that moment, and I just questioned what was actually accomplished through this protest.”
‘Free Expression Must Be Protected’
In a written statement, Morton O. Schapiro and Daniel I. Linzer, Northwestern’s president and provost, respectively, condemned the protest and suggested the university would take further action. “The behavior of our students in this incident was disrespectful, inappropriate, and contrary to the values of the university,” the statement said. “Free expression must be protected and should be countered with more debate, close examination, and critical thinking — not censorship.”
The protesters said that the administration’s viewpoint had posed a threat to safety.
“The university, in its fierce and uncompromising protection of the ‘free expression’ of ICE, legitimized state-sanctioned violence and, in so doing, undermined the well-being of students, faculty, and staff who have been violated,” read a statement from the protesting group. “As students, we value academic spaces to learn dissenting views, but cannot compromise the safety of our community members.”
The university, in its fierce and uncompromising protection of the ‘free expression’ of ICE, legitimized state-sanctioned violence and, in so doing, undermined the well-being of students, faculty, and staff.
ICE arrests rose 38 percent during the first three months of Donald J. Trump’s presidency compared with the same period last year, the agency announced this week. With 41,318 arrests, that is more than 400 per day.
April Navarro, a sophomore who helped organize the protests, told The Daily Northwestern that giving an ICE representative the opportunity to speak in a class had made the university complicit in acts that “terrorize communities.”
“We’re not interested in having those types of conversations that would be like, Oh, let’s listen to their side of it, because that’s making them passive rule-followers rather than active proponents of violence,” she said.
Other students said they were worried that the officer’s visit would attract recruits. “There are people who would be listening to this ICE representative and agreeing with them and maybe one day becoming an ICE agent or co-signing and supporting them, and that in itself is violence,” Danielle Douge told the newspaper.
But Ms. Redbird said she had taken similar concerns into account before issuing the invitation. “I specifically went looking for people who have no arrest power,” Ms. Redbird said, noting that Ms. Walters is a public-relations officer for the agency. “Students had the choice to come or not come. I didn’t want anybody to feel unsafe.” The professor continued: “I know a few undocumented students. I mentioned my speech to them, and they said, Can we come?”
She said she especially wanted the students to learn that ICE is situated in the executive branch, how it works with state and local law enforcement, and how much local autonomy the nearby Chicago office has.
Support From Student Government
Northwestern’s student government issued a statement supporting undocumented students and the stance of the protesters. (The student government passed a resolution two months ago asking the university to prioritize its speech-protection policies and to resist censorship.)
Students certainly have the right to protest, but not in a way that interferes with the essential educational functions of the university.
Following the protest, Ms. Redbird canceled the planned visit by the undocumented speaker, citing safety and privacy concerns.
Hans-Joerg Tiede, who handles academic-freedom issues for the American Association of University Professors, said the protest was inappropriate, much like other protests to remove controversial speakers.
“Whether inside or outside the classroom, we do not believe it is appropriate to shut down speakers,” Mr. Tiede said. “Students certainly have the right to protest, but not in a way that interferes with the essential educational functions of the university.”
Ms. Redbird said her students had been excited about the lecture, not necessarily because they agree with what ICE does but to learn about its functioning. “I spend a lot of time in my class telling my students knowledge is power. How can you ever expect to make change in the system if you don’t understand the way that system works?” Ms. Redbird said. “This was the chance to learn the way the process works, and I’m disappointed we lost that chance.”
Ms. Bilal said she considered the whole incident a loss. “They didn’t have a lesson plan, they didn’t bring facts in,” she said of the protesters. “That would have been more effective. If you’re just going to complain about people’s ignorance and disrupt their class but not do anything — not try to educate us, just try to villainize us — you’re part of the problem, helping keeping that ignorance in place.”
