Z Magazine: Tent State University at Rutgers
The third annual Tent State University took place at Rutgers University the week of April 18, 2005. The demonstration had support from students, student groups, the Administration, faculty, and legislators. The basic message of their mission statement was: “Education, Not War.” Throughout the week, students attended workshops in the day, danced to bands in the evening, and camped in tents all night.
What is Tent State University?
Tent State University (TSU) was launched in 2003 at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, N . Its purpose was to stop drastic state budget cuts to higher education that were pending in the wake of the war on Afghanistan and Iraq.
Following the activities of the local antiwar movement, a coalition of over 50 student groups, faculty, and staff unions came together o support the event. For 5 days, hundreds of students built and maintained a tent city with over 75 tents on Voorhees Mall (the largest and most traveled class area on campus), symbolizing the displacement of Higher Education in NJ. During the event, Rutgers students were organized to place thousands of calls to legislators in opposition to the dismantling of higher education and impending tuition increases. This legislative strategy was complimented by a wide array of activities, from alternative day-time classes to live bands and a variety of other performances every night.
TSU was more than just a protest. It merged the creation of an alternative “university” system and the most significant cultural festival at RU, all built around the recognition of education as a fundamental human right one that is compromised by war. Repeated in 2004 and now established as an annual event, TSU has been acknowledged as critical in helping to stop budget cuts and curtail tuition increases at Rutgers and throughout New Jersey
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