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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (May 7, 2001)
Activism continued from page 1 show support for or disapproval of the protesters. “It was an excellent opportunity to see a sit-in,” he said. “To witness this contest over public space, this was a prime example.” He said the situation provided his students a valuable lesson in the symbolism inherent to all collective movements. “It wasn’t just any administration building,” he said. “It had become a space of broader global conflict. ... There’s something in witnessing that, that you can’t get out of a textbook.” While Dreiling is active in several causes himself, he said he under stands he can’t bring his own politi cal agenda into the classroom. He said it’s his job to provide only the context for his students to under stand political movements, not to inspire them to become activists themselves. “I don’t believe that what we offer is a route to some political truth,” he said. “I think what we can offer is a set of tools for students to create their own, more informed and en riched horizon on social reality.” Daniel Pope, a history professor and head of the history department, has taught a class on American radi calism for 25 years at the University and said he has witnessed several student movements. He also was ac tive himself in the movement against the Vietnam War during the 1960s. Pope said there are two schools of thought on collective actions. The first, and the one he adheres to, is that groups will organize by the merit of their causes. He said those who are drawn to activism are then the ones who most adamantly be lieve their cause can be successful. The second school of thought is based on the idea that activists unite through causes because they can’t bond with society, he said. “Their inability to cope with the world leads them to protest,” he said. Even though Pope did not give much credence to the theory, he did acknowledge that people are attract ed to collective movements through the people they know. “You can’t say no one is pulled into things because their roommate or friend or girlfriend is involved,” he said. Pope said the most frequent moti vation for collective action on cam pus has been environmental con cerns. He said the same kind of fervor for “green” causes that was around in the 1960s and 1970s is still prevalent, even if some of the specifics have changed. “Oregon is a hot spot for that kind of environmental consciousness,” he said. 1 he recent and spirited protests against international trade can be at tributed to this respect for the envi ronment, he said, but also to the prominence of large Uni vers ty donors in the issues. “When you have a visible and personified target, that makes a re source for organizing,” he said. While Pope said all campus protests have been constructive and positive, he was troubled by what he termed an “anti-humanist view” that he said placed too much em phasis on animals and trees and de graded the human life. He said when he sees protesters de stroying business and engaging in eco-terrorism, he believes it’s “dumb and destructive and kind of hostile.” Associate political science profes sor Gerald Berk teaches a course on political movements in American history and has witnessed protests during his years at the University. The first occurred shortly after he arrived on campus, and was based on a dispute about multicultural ism. Berk said that even though tempers flared during the protests, the outcome of the movement was commendable. “My first impression of campus movements and the way the admin istration handled it was very posi tive,” he said. Berk said positive dialogue be tween students and the administra tion has continued, but he did note a lingering break between students and the administration following the sit-ins over the Worker Rights Consortium. “It seems to me now that if any thing, the gulf between the adminis tration and students is growing big ger,” he said. 2001 (10 Summer Session Duck Call/Duck web Starts Today! Register Now for Summer Classes. Book Your Summer in Oregon Summer session starts June 25. Short courses, seminars, and workshops begin throughout the summer. The UO Summer Session Catalog is here now. Pick up your copy today in the Summer Session office, 333 Oregon Hall, or at the UO Bookstore. You can speed your way toward graduation by taking required courses during summer. University of Oregon Summer Session http://uosummer.uoregon.edu/ 011561 407 West 11th • Eugene • 431-7300 Fuji Regis Comfort Bike SALE $149 reg $199 Fuji Suncrest Mountain Bike SALE $799 reg $899 ►Fuji Boulevard Mountain Bike SALE $149 reg $199 While supplies last Commit to the Environment the Fun Way!
