EDITORS' CORNER
OPINION: While everyone is here marching, might as well air all grievances!
Student protests against the alleged rapes at Cornell University quickly devolved into a general airing of grievance by liberal activists.
Since many of the protests were organized by slew of left-wing groups on campuses, including pro-Palestinian and pro-abortion clubs, it only made sense they would use the opportunity to complain about their own pet issues.
All of the protests in the past few weeks had the primary goal of calling for changes in how sexual assault allegations are handled on specific college campuses as well as standing with the accuser in the Cornell frat party rape case.
That makes sense – insofar as students believe the sexual assault investigation process is broken, calling for changes (whatever they actually are) is a logical response.
But hey while we are all here, why not lay out our other complaints.
A rally at Harvard University called for “an independent grievance process for harassment and discrimination complaints” and “expanded resources for survivors,” according to the student newspaper.
But activists also demanded “the reopening of two diversity offices shuttered in July 2025.”
Meanwhile at Cornell itself, Students for a Democratic Cornell called for justice for the accuser and punishment for her alleged rapists. The group’s Instagram bio reads that its focus is on “Fighting for the reform of Cornell’s repressive Code of Conduct to end the unjust suspensions of students.”
Due process for me, but not for thee!
Its protest included the Planned Parenthood club, Committee on U.S.-Latin American Relations, and the campus ACLU.
The problem of “rape culture” is tied in with “colonialism,” according to one student leader at the University of Pittsburgh.
“This is not a problem that’s contained to Cornell,” an event organizer said. “It is a global problem that is perpetuated by patriarchy, toxic masculinity, white supremacism, racism [and] colonialism. Nothing exists in a vacuum.”
University of New Mexico activists agreed. During their rally, students shared their complaints about UNM’s sexual assault reporting system.
But they also whined about a restaurant allowing ICE agents to eat there, falsely claiming they were given a discount.
“During the march, students briefly rallied outside Frontier Restaurant, chanting ‘boycott Frontier’ due to claims of the restaurant providing discounted meals to law enforcement, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents,” the Daily Lobo reported.
(The restaurant has no such policy. The truth matters not to the mob).
The irony is mixing up unrelated issues may backfire on the protesters. While university administrators are probably liberal themselves, they may just see the rallies as yet another leftist rally on campus, only tangentially related to sexual assault.
That would allow them to dismiss the concerns without listening to what the activists have to say.
Rallies are like good articles – they should have one, focused message. Otherwise people lose interest.
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