They are students of Prof. Robert Huish, who teaches development and
activism, a new course he was instrumental in launching this fall at
Dalhousie University to delve into the history and theory of activism
while encouraging practical action.
The idea for the class raised eyebrows among faculty members, some of
whom worried it would be ideologically motivated, or that its title
would carry connotations of radicalism, even violence. But activists and
observers say it is a great way to stir students’ civic instincts, even
if the controlled environment of the classroom may not always be the
ideal place to effect social change.
On Nov. 27, most of the class’s 70 students joined Prof. Huish, who also
teaches a course in volunteerism, to march from Dalhousie’s campus to
the Halifax Seaport Farmers Market. They obtained a sidewalk permit from
the city, secured a police escort, and came armed with slogans.
Prof. Huish expects skepticism about whether an institution can teach
activism, but stressed that “the most successful social movements in
history have been born on campuses,” and the course “was born out of
student demand.”
“[Students] want to know how can their voices be heard?” Prof. Huish
said. “I approached this course as a means of facilitating that ability
to communicate. I see activism as a skill that can be taught.”
Until now, students in international development studies took a required
course on the design and management of development projects. For some
it is hugely useful, said department chair John Cameron, but it teaches
“a bureaucratic, technocratic vision of bringing about social change.”
He felt it was impractical for the many students who were not planning
to go on to work for aid agencies or NGOs.
And so Prof. Cameron and his colleagues devised development and activism
as an alternative, “a course focused on engaged forms of citizenship –
essentially what [students] can do as citizens of Canada.”
The new class had students mounting education campaigns at elementary
and high schools, as well as exploring the many forms of activism, from
writing to a member of Parliament to composing a press release. The
students ultimately decided they should rally, said Prof. Huish, who
made attendance optional. Students were evaluated only on their
organization of the event – formulating a coherent message, obtaining
the necessary permits and the like – and not on the march itself.
The class has none of the anarchist trappings of the activist course
once taught by Denis Rancourt, since dismissed from the University of
Ottawa, whose disciples included two suspects in an Ottawa firebombing.
With videos of brutal G20 melees circulating widely, and clashes over
tuition hikes turning violent in Britain, Prof. Huish preaches peaceful
assembly and has his students dissect some of activism’s less admirable
moments.
“I certainly think the students have a very attuned insight as to say,
here’s a case study of activism that didn’t go well, or the message was
lost because of X, Y and Z,” he said.
Officials in Halifax see no reason to believe the course will disturb
the peace. “As long as people abide by the laws and demonstrate
peacefully, then they're not a concern to police,” said a spokesman for
the Halifax Regional Police, while Councillor Jennifer Watts said the
course seems to have been conducted responsibly.
“If you train someone and give them a [driver’s] licence and they go out
and … commit all sorts of infractions, should you not have taught them
how to drive?” she said. “Each individual is responsible for their
actions.”
Carleton University sociology professor Jacqueline Kennelly, who has
studied youth engagement in activism, believes the will and skill to
demonstrate has waned in recent decades, largely because of greater
pressure on students to quickly become “employable,” and more intense
policing, which has made protesting riskier. She applauded Prof. Huish’s
efforts, stressing that activism can and should be taught.
“This idea of [activism] as emerging spontaneously out of nowhere is not
actually the reality,” she said. “You don’t just absorb it through the
skin.”
Dalhousie expects to offer the course again next year, although it will
be up to students whether they stage another march. And Prof. Cameron is
adamant that, far from rabble-rousing, the course teaches essential
citizenship skills.
“This is just as important as learning how to read critically, or how to write papers,” he said.
