A University of Massachusetts Amherst student group organized a walkout protest on Wednesday, condemning “fascists, right-wing trolls, conservative apologists, etc.” and labeled conservatives “the enemy.”
“You have been warned,” added the UMass Amherst student group, Student Against Fascism, advising conservatives (the enemy) not to attend their walkout.
The student group staged the walkout to protest “right-wing terror,” which included “conservative apologists” and “rapist [Supreme Court Justice] Kavanaugh,” among several national incidences, which they blamed on either the Trump administration or conservatives in general.
We are frightened and angry at the appointment of the rapist Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, the Trump administration’s attack on trans rights, the fascist public beatings and antisemitic arson attacks in NYC, the white-supremacist murders in Kentucky, the antisemitic mass shooting in Pittsburgh, the sexist mass shooting in Florida, the growing threats of state and vigilante violence against the caravan of Honduran refugees traveling to the US border, and the list just keeps getting longer.
“Political violence does not end at the polls, so our Resistance must continue beyond election day.” Added the group in the event’s description.
The Antifa-inspired student group has designated fellow American citizens as “the enemy” amid recent events in which a similar group harassed Fox News host Tucker Carlson’s wife outside of their family home.
The group, Smash Racism DC, is an Antifa group co-founded by Mike Isaacson, an ex-professor from John Jay College of Criminal Justice, who has also appeared on Carlson’s show.
Isaacson was placed on leave at John Jay College shortly after posting several anti-police statements on Twitter, including one in which he claimed it was a “privilege” to teach “future dead cops,” suggesting that his students would one day be killed in the line of duty.
Some of y'all might think it sucks being an anti-fascist teaching at John Jay College but I think it's a privilege to teach future dead cops
— Mike Isaacson (@VulgarEconomics) August 23, 2017
The professor was reported to have been terminated by the college in early 2018.
The events that have taken place outside of Carlson’s home are eerily similar to the events taking place on college campuses across the country, where the argument is oftentimes made that words alone can equate to physical harm.
As similar incidences occur outside university life, such as a home being vandalized due to the exercising of speech, this affirms a belief held by many on college campuses: speech that one considers “offensive” may warrant a physical response.
You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Twitter at @ARmastrangelo and on Instagram.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.