UW Community Joins In Nationwide Blackout to Protest ICE
UW students joined in the nationwide blackout day on Jan 30. They sat on the boulders on Simpson’s Plaza, smiling and talking to passers-by.
The economic blackout was a protest against ICE following the mass deportation initiatives implemented by the Trump administration, and it coincided with the Minneapolis general strike on Jan 23.
The motto of the blackout was, “no work, no school, no shopping.” A few students joined the ‘lone protester’ who has been standing in Simpson’s Plaza for the past several days.
“I went in, and my English teacher was talking to us about how to do an interview properly. I’m sitting there, and I was kind of just itching to get out. You know I wanted to be somewhere else. This is a lot more important to me,” Quinn Smith, president of the UW Music Appreciation Club.
Two of the protesters interviewed cited Tim, the Marine who has been protesting solo in Laramie for several weeks, as their inspiration to come to the protest.
“And honestly, the biggest inspiration for me wasn’t the blackout. Is that guy right there, the Marine? His name is Tim. He’s the greatest person I’ve ever, ever met,” Smith said.
Smith played banjo and guitar, giving the demonstration a tune. Several other members of the Music Appreciation Club came out in support.
“It’s an important topic that means a lot to a lot of people, and even though it doesn’t affect me in particular. I can use my position and my stance to actively help those who cannot; by using my voice and just stepping up,” Vice President of the Music Appreciation Club, Even Anderson said.
Anderson said Tim the Marine was his inspiration, and he said Tim gave him hope and was a “shining light.”
The demonstrators spoke of a mostly positive reception from the campus and polite conversations with those who disagreed.
“A lot of people came and talked to us. There have been a few people who have heckled a little bit, but that’s natural,” student Elijah Cook. “The reason I come out and do this, and what we’ve seen is that, like, a lot of people who disagree with us have been able to come and have a respectful conversation, and it feels like we’re learning, and also, maybe we’re educating them a little bit.”
The demonstrators knew their numbers were small and that their voices might not be very loud in the grand scheme of things, but all said they felt what they were doing was important.
“I’ve just been getting a lot of bad news constantly, and it’s terrible,” Smith said. “And it makes me anxious and scared, and I can’t focus on my schoolwork, so I just stop. And I realized that the best way I can help is by taking control of what I can. Protesting locally is what I can do.”
This sentiment was echoed by the other demonstrators on Prexies, with Cook encouraging others to talk to their friends and family about the injustices in the world.
“Even if it’s just one person doing something, that’s one more than zero, right?” Anderson said.
