2003-02-02 - 1:40 p.m.
How I Made It Into the Soceity Pages:
Last wednesday night, at the Sheraton hotel in Midtown-Manhattan, about 9 of my classmates and I gathered to raise some objections to the "Fiorello La Guardia Award Dinner" that our school, New School University, was holding there. The dinner (at $1,000 a plate) was being held to raise money for the school and to honor George David, a new trustee, and the CEO of United Technologies. United Technologies manufactures Blackhawk helicopters, which have been used to kill civilians in Israel, Columbia, and Turkey, to name a few. Our school was founded by a group of intellectuals opposed to world war I. Clearly the two don't match up.
And so about 8 of us stood outside and handed out "programs" (with the New School logo on front and everything) that contained information about George David and the Universities history to the participants as they walked into the dinner (dressed in furs and shoes that probably cost about 1/4 of our tuition). "Would you like a program?" we would ask. Some people were receptive, some said dumbass things (in reaction to our sign that said "Shame: Kerrey (the university president) no militarization of NSU David: Stop manufacturing war machines) like "I hate Hussein" and "Go down town and look at the world trade center".
But the kicker was three students dressed up all fancy like and attepmted to enter the awards ceremony. Right as Bob Kerrey began a speech they went in and managed to get in a yell of, "We are students at New School University and we oppose the militarization of NSU!" before they were dragged out by security.
After the event was over three of us (Carrie, Drew and I) went back into the hotel to hand out more programs as people were leaving. We were there about 20 minutes and handed about 20 out before we were nicely escorted out by security.
But here's the real chuckle: While we were outside a reporter from the New York Sun (a republican, tabloidesque paper) took a picture of Thea holding the sign and interviewed her, Sean and I about why were there. I saw Thea the next day and she showed me the paper- there she was in the society section, holding the "Shame" sign, her picture next to all the fancy rich people who attended the dinner! In the caption our names and a quote from me, "We came to this school because of the progressive, if not radical, education tradition and this does not fit."
That night my parents called and I told them about the first and last time I made the society pages. "You better send a copy to your grandmother," they told me. For more info check out http://www.freensu.org
