Mark Rudd, a former leader of Students for a Democratic Society and member of the Weather Underground, spoke in the Public Health Auditorium Wednesday night to advocate a non-violent strategy for protesting.
“If you use violence you’re either stupid, or a cop,” Rudd said.
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Rudd recounted how fellow students at Columbia protested and overtook several buildings after learning that the university worked for the military, and that the university intended to expand into the black neighborhood of Harlem.
Rudd said that he was expelled for his actions, and then went around the country speaking at colleges on behalf of SDS. Then he became part of a growing militant faction of SDS that aimed to violently overthrow the government. According to the Tribune-Review, Weather Underground bombed Pittsburgh’s own Gulf Building in 1974.
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“I don’t think that militarism is that valuable at this point,” Rudd said. “I don’t understand the black bandanas. They played right into the hands of the police and the media.”
Instead, Rudd advocated the idea of building a large base movement through a non-violent strategy of education and building of relationships with people.
However, many G-20 protesters strongly disagreed, often angrily interrupting Rudd — such as Pitt student and member of the Pittsburgh G-20 Resistance Project, Noah Willumsen.
“My main problem is he made a lot of assumptions,” Willumsen said after the lecture. “His ideas are dated. He assumes that there has to be a leader and a framework that emphasizes structure, a hierarchy and part line.”
“We didn’t send people a letter saying, ‘This is what we’re doing, if you don’t do it you’re stupid or a cop’,” Willumsen said, quoting Rudd. “That’s ridiculous.”
Jordan Romanus, president of the Pitt chapter of Students for a Democratic Society said that they brought Mark Rudd to speak because he fit in with the group’s current vision.
“Anti-war activist speaks at Pitt, sparks debate” by Eric Shannon, The Pitt News 3-4-10
Party line, perhaps? Can’t get the image to appear to prove I’m not a spambot, so here’s my reply to FENNIS DEMBO’s amusing comment:
Rudd is a statist and annoying, but he’s right about the militarism and the black bandan(n)as. Seriously, kids, uniforms? And, remind me, what did the dumpster antics accomplish save making a mess and reinforcing stereotypes? As Burroughs quipped, “Squares on both sides,” yo.
Have fun and cuídate.