Progressive activists on Wednesday continued to organize against House Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s upcoming visit to Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management.
The No. 2 Republican in the House will be speaking about income inequality 12:15 to 1 p.m. Friday at the Allen Center, 2169 Campus Drive, Kellogg spokeswoman Megan Washburn confirmed Tuesday.
In the wake of that announcement, at least four groups are planning coordinated protests Friday, according to their representatives and Facebook postings.
Occupy Northwestern will be forming a picket line outside the Allen Center starting noon Friday, said one of its organizers, graduate student Lauryn Flizeer. She added some Occupy Chicago participants will be traveling north to join the campus-based group.
Flizeer said she was “inspired by UPenn” to challenge Cantor’s on-campus appearance, pointing to his recent lecture cancellation at the Ivy League school after Occupy protesters showed up in force.
The Facebook event page for the Occupy Northwestern protest urges participants to give Cantor the “same kind of welcome they gave him at UPenn.”
Flizeer cited Cantor’s views on the minimum wage, bank bailouts and tax cuts as why his visit needs to be challenged.
“He’s the staunchest advocate of the 1 percent,” she said, using the Occupy movement’s term for the country’s top income-earners. “He’s against everything that people of conscience stand for in this country.”
Occupy Evanston protester Jack Sigel was similarly critical of Cantor’s political convictions. He said he has been in touch with other Occupy groups and will be gathering other city demonstrators for Friday’s speech.
Sigel added it is especially pertinent NU students pay attention to Cantor’s beliefs and how they could negatively impact their generation.
“I think it’s huge for the students to know who Eric Cantor is,” Sigel said. “He’s leading the charge to eliminate Pell grants. This is not someone who is on the students’ side.”
But Sigel downplayed turnout numbers Wednesday, saying Occupy attendance is naturally difficult to anticipate.
“It’s in the nature of Occupy movements not to have top-down leadership,” he said, adding “as many in my group who can come” will be present.
Weinberg freshman Tom Cui agreed Cantor’s campus visit should not go uncontested. He said he will try to appear at as many protests as possible Friday.
Cui also mentioned a potential protest by local MoveOn members Friday, recalling a recent exchange with a MoveOn coordinator.
Messages left with two representatives from the Illinois 9th Congressional District MoveOn Council were not immediatedly returned Wednesday night.
Regardless of Friday’s turnout, Cui said Cantor’s speech serves as a valuable opportunity to grow Northwestern and Evanston’s Occupy involvement.
“It can definitely sustain,” he said. “Get 1,000 kids out on campus and pay attention. I know there are some people on campus who want to get involved but just need the spark to get things going.”
A Politico article published Wednesday morning focused on Cantor’s sometimes controversial public appearances. Authors Jake Sherman and John Bresnahan touched on his recent speech back-out at UPenn as a prime example of their topic.
“But the event was canceled when the Service Employees International Union and the Occupy Philadelphia protest movement threatened to fill the 300-person audience,” the authors wrote. “That won’t stop Cantor – has upcoming speeches at Northwestern University and Rice University.”
