For the second straight day, police removed Workers’ Rights Consortium protesters from the lobby of Johnson Hall on Wednesday.
When the administration office closed at 5 p.m., police removed Autumn De Poe, Melissa Unger, Aaron Blount, Felisa Hagins, Heather Mitchell and Benjamin Goldman from the lobby. As officers videotaped the incident, Eugene Police Department officers handcuffed all six students, took them to the Johnson Hall basement and issued them second degree trespassing citations.
The six students refused to leave the lobby until University President Dave Frohnmayer signed on with the WRC, which monitors working conditions at factories that produce University licensed products.
Wednesday’s activities also focused on educating the protesters on University structure and governance. ASUO President Wylie Chen outlined how decisions are made at the University and state government level.
Bobby Seale, co-founder of the Black Panther Party, also spoke to the crowd about education and activism.
“Take time to say, ‘Wait a minute. Let me investigate what this is all about,’” he told them. “He or she who assumes — nine times out of 10 — will be wrong.”
Seale spoke later Wednesday night as keynote speaker, with Edward James Olmos, at the Dr. Edwin Coleman Speaker Series.
Wednesday’s incident in Johnson Hall was similar to Tuesday afternoon, when five students including ASUO Vice President Mitra Anoushiravani and President-elect Jay Breslow refused to leave and also received trespassing citations.
Those arrested on Wednesday, however, were much more vocal than on Tuesday. The group chanted, “A people united will never be divided,” as police offered them one more chance to leave, then pulled each one away from the group.
As students were being handcuffed inside, a full protest continued on the steps of Johnson Hall. About 55 students camped in tents and tarps on the administration building’s lawn to keep the protest going Wednesday night. While the number of protesters has shrunk during the past 48 hours, a core group of about 40 students remained throughout the day Wednesday, keeping their pledge not to leave.
After two days of demonstrating, the focus of the protest is broadening for some students. Chen said the demonstration represented more than just support for the WRC, but also the work for better diversity and against Gardenburger last year, when students felt the administration was not listening to their concerns.
“I don’t think [Frohnmayer] holds the same respect of us as we do of him,” Chen said.
Frohnmayer has said he is committed to signing on with the WRC but is waiting until he hears from the University Senate and receives final recommendations from the Licensing Code of Conduct Committee. He left for Washington, D.C., early Wednesday morning without speaking to the protesters.
In a statement to the faculty and staff, Frohnmayer stressed his willingness to join the WRC and his unwavering demand that the decision go through the proper channels of University governance.
“We are all heading for the same goals,” he said. “I differ with the protesters only in terms of the process — and timing of a few weeks at most — used to achieve these gains.”
Human Rights Alliance member Sarah Jacobson said that the WRC will remain the focus of the protest until Frohnmayer agrees to the students’ demands, no matter how many days it takes.
“Frohnmayer should expect that when he returns, we’ll still be here,” she said.
University Vice President Dan Williams said that as long as protesters remain civil as they have for the past 48 hours, they will be permitted to stay on the grounds and in the building during its 8 a.m.-5 p.m. business hours.