Participants in protest against FBI repression (Fight Back! News/Staff)

Tallahassee, FL - On Nov. 12, Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) disrupted a FBI recruitment panel at Florida State University. Students distributed informational flyers outside of the event detailing the role of the FBI in repression against activists and violations of civil rights.

Shortly into the FBI talk, a determined group of FSU students disrupted the speaker by announcing their opposition to the FBI presence on campus. The students educated those present about the FBI use of intimidation, spying and raids to repress activism. Their signs read, “End illegal spying” and “No FBI on campus.”

The students continued their protest, chanting, “Hey, hey, ho, ho, the FBI has got to go!” They got up and spoke in detail of the 2010 FBI raids on the homes and offices of anti-war and international solidarity activists in the Midwest. They also educated other students about the FBI spying and repression of the African American civil rights movement. Then the student activists chanted, “Justice for Rasmea!” in solidarity with the 67-year-old Palestinian activist who was jailed in Detroit earlier this week. After 15 minutes of continuous disruption, campus police officers removed the students from the event.

Regina Joseph, a leader in FSU Dream Defenders explains, “The FBI is a tool used to attack anyone who wants to raise political dissent. Its aim is not national security but upholding white supremacy.”

When questioned about the disruptive tactics used by the protestors, Maressa Simmons, an SDS member and leader in the F-Word, a feminist group on campus, answered, “There is no gray area as far as the FBI is concerned, you either are a murderer and support genocide and white supremacy, or you fight for the end of oppression.”

Asked about what she hoped the protest accomplished, SDS member Abby Cazel said, “I can only hope that these students will look more thoroughly into the literature that we gave out and begin to seek truth.” She added, “While I consider it a success to agitate the easily agitated, I consider it even more of a success to ignite questions in the minds of the curious. This is what I hope we achieved by shutting down this meeting.”

The disruption was recorded by a participant and is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWHdTTPeeHA