VIDEO: Unions Shout Walker Down At Gateway 100th Celebration
Video shows them chanting "shame, shame shame" and "recall Walker."
Governor Scott Walker speaks at Gateway Technical College's centennial celebration on July 12, 2011.
Paul Holley
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Whil Governor Scott Walker gave a speech at a 100th anniversary celebration for Gateway Technical College, union employees angery about state budget cuts chanted over him.
Kevin Mulvenna, a teacher at Milwauke Area Technical College and union member, captured a video. Here's the link:
Heather in Caledonia
8:22 am on Wednesday, July 13, 2011
I think it was a bad idea on his part to attend.
CowDung
9:24 am on Wednesday, July 13, 2011
I think it was a bad idea to suppress Walker's right to speak.
Dirk
9:28 am on Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Continues the pattern of irresponsibility by 'unions,' which should be a part of history by now.
Heather in Caledonia
10:02 am on Wednesday, July 13, 2011
CowDung, yes, it was a bad idea, but the protesters have as much right to holler as he does to make the speech. It just gave them more free publicity (although, from scanning the comments on the JT, it looks like it make people more exasperated with the unions) and another chance to make a ruckus.
CowDung
10:17 am on Wednesday, July 13, 2011
I disagree. The 'designated speaker' at an organized event always has more of a right to speak than the audience members...
Heather in Caledonia
10:28 am on Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Actually, I think Gateway had the most "right" here and they knew this was going to happen. They must have wanted this to play out this way. There would have been an even bigger scene if they had tried to stop the people from shouting and they knew that going in (if they didn't think of that, they sure have some naive people working there...) I still think it was Walker who should have declined to be part of such a fiasco, but, then again, the terrorists would have won, eh?
I agree that attendees to an organized event have an obligation to listen respectfully to a speaker, however, as far as "rights" go - they're just as free as the speaker to make their voices heard. The organizer then has the right to have them removed from the event if they wish. In this case, that would have caused a riot.
CowDung
10:32 am on Wednesday, July 13, 2011
How exactly would Gateway have known that protesters would disrupt their program? If they had known, they likely would have had more security in place to deal with the situation and remove the protesters.
Yes, I agree that the organizer of the event has the right to remove them--doesn't that indicate that the protesters really don't have the same 'right' to have their voices heard as the speaker?
Heather in Caledonia
11:33 am on Wednesday, July 13, 2011
I could have told them a couple of months ago that protesters would be there to disrupt the speeches. Education is their business and they must have been fully aware of what was going to happen. Didn't the head of the union for the Gateway teachers even commend the speakers? If they had more security there and that security would have tried to remove the protesters, there would have been a riot.
And, no, that does not imply that the protesters have less of a "right." If a speaker had walked up and started shouting things that Gateway thought was inappropriate, they could also have been asked to leave.
melissa Warner
8:38 am on Thursday, July 14, 2011
You are assuming "unions." While many protesters were union members, many were not. It's not only unions who felt that the person who cut Gateway funds by 30% was a poor choice as a speaker.
Glenda Alexander
8:51 am on Thursday, July 14, 2011
I'm late jumping on this but I have news for CowDung: I stood with several other protesters (holding the letters S H A M E) outside the back walkway where the Gateway faculty entered the speech area. They were ALL giving us the thumbs up and several said they were glad we were there. Walker has turned a deaf ear to large segments of the populace in their outcry over his strong-arm tactics - notice how he continued delivering his address about the merits of community colleges as he continues the onslaught against public eduaction funding. Will this state - alas the entire nation - ever return to governing for good of its citizens? Or will the voices of the "hell No" caucus override the sensible compromise required to govern effectively? Wasn't Walker's phone call with "David Koch" enough to show the true purpose of his actions? Protesting in a loud voice in a public forum is the only course left to the middle-classin their effort to have their voices heard given the dismal Citizens United decision. How else can we compete against the billionaires that purchase our elections?
CowDung
10:21 am on Thursday, July 14, 2011
Most public school districts are actually better off financially after Walker's "onslaught against public education funding". I'd consider that as 'governing for the good of the citizens'...
http://www.fox6now.com/news/investigators/witi-20110713-inv-school-deals,0,7065478.story?page=1
Glenda Alexander
8:55 am on Thursday, July 14, 2011
BTW - I am NOT a union member nor have I ever been a union member. Before retiring I was the owner of a small business that continues to this day under the leadership of my daughter. But I have always been a member of the middle class and I fear for the future of America's middle class given the current political climate. How can we compete against the voices of major corporations and their deep pockets? By making public protests that cost nothing but carry a strong message!