When I arrived at UTD nearly seven years ago, I came in expecting the classic accusations we’re so familiar with: a quiet, nerdy commuter campus with next to no student life. But what I found was energy and students wanting to fight for what mattered to them.
My first experience was in the Plinth, where students rallied against abusive working conditions and managed to secure protections for student workers from discrimination and sexual harassment by managers. I then pushed to make Student Government more accessible and transparent; organized with other student leaders on how to continue to meet campus needs after the abrupt closures of diversity, equity and inclusion programs on campus; stood alongside students fighting against the university’s crackdown on free speech when the Spirit Rocks were removed; witnessed students fighting for a free Palestine; and witnessed how queer students protested and confronted a culture of hate, harassment and intimidation by right-wing student organizations.
Each of these acts demonstrates our collective power as students. We are not passive. When our communities are threatened, we use the tools at our disposal: forcing administration to talk with students, making petitions, forcing a spotlight on problems with protests or civil disobedience. In those moments, I see my fellow students carrying a spark of passion, not any supposed apathy.
Yet a troubling pattern has emerged across the years, where collective action rises and falls cyclically. Instead of a persistent pressure from activists that builds on past victories or even a central place for students to get plugged in on campus issues, we see student organizers addressing the same issues repeatedly.
Instead of a persistent pressure from activists that builds on past victories or even a central place for students to get plugged in on campus issues, we see student organizers addressing the same issues repeatedly.
For instance, longtime students remember the waves of anti-abortion protests and counter-protests that occurred every semester from 2018 to 2020, faded away in 2021, then resumed again in 2022 and 2023 before fading away again in the present. These protests did not achieve anything long-lasting or substantial. Meanwhile, lawmakers, governments and organizations hostile to us students are never resting, instead constantly reinforcing the anti-abortion laws and culture in the state.
Consider the consequences of the past two legislative sessions. As universities rushed to over-comply with Senate Bill 17, Texas students lost funding and access to valuable resources and communities; this meant losing mentorship programs, multicultural events and staff that provided specialized support to students in need. Faculty governance is being eroded and censored as power shifts to politically-appointed regents who bend to the whims of Texas’ culture war. These are not abstract “politics,” they determine whether our state and our campus is welcoming, democratic and affordable or hollowed out by external forces.
Many students are left unaware of these issues or bills. On the campus level, SG and campus organizations like Red Rose Collective, Period Project and Students for Justice in Palestine have been on campus pursuing changes with protests, policy ideas and building student power. However, SG is often rushing to react to sudden developments like student visa revocations or dealing with budget cuts, which means it lacks the long-term focus and energy needed to make sustained changes that align with student needs. The new program to enhance communication with organizations is promising but currently does not solve the gaps left after previous campus crises. The other organizations are not exempt from this lack of long-term power either. SJP has to deal with severe limitations on expressive activities, a hostile administration and leadership changes. Red Rose Collective and Period Project have to sustain membership, deal with their previous victories being reversed and struggle with a lack of coalition partners to advance goals like they could in the past.
On a broader scale, statewide student-led advocacy coalitions, such as Texas Students for DEI and Students Engaged in Advancing Texas, are fighting back in Austin against the issues that threaten marginalized communities in higher education. They draft amendments, directly lobby lawmakers and sometimes even kill harmful bills, such as Senate Bill 16 in 2023, which would have added professor watchlists alongside a critical race theory ban. However, with over 9,000 bills filed in a session, no student group can keep up with everything. Even with identified threats, the word rarely reaches students in time. Finals often overlap with the legislative calendar for hearings and votes, and connections to the legislature are scattered with advocates stretched thin across the state, leaving many students that simply don’t know where to look on how to get involved with the legislature. The opportunity to be involved gets lost, even if the threat is known.
However, with over 9,000 bills filed in a session, no student group can keep up with everything.
The truth is uncomfortable: the problem is not that UTD students don’t care. It’s that we lack the continuity, coalitions and long-term strategy that real power requires. Without them, our victories remain temporary. Programs shrink. Faculty feel censored. Students feel less supported.
The challenge of breaking this cycle requires intentional effort. UTD students can ask for statewide advocacy groups to host workshops on legislative literacy and campus organizing. Students must learn beyond the government class: events like advocacy days are great to learn how the legislature actually works. They let you go to the capital to learn how to lobby legislators and then you get to do that. Texas Freedom Network, Equality Texas and Texas AFT are some of many organizations that host these events. Individual students can learn some tools of politics, how cross-issue solidarity works in the capital and see the issues with state-level organizing to help create statewide change.
Student organizations have a lot of work to do on building long-term power. Coalitions across our campus are needed more than ever but must be aware of how previous coalitions have fallen because of infighting. The ultimate goal would be to be a student union that let students democratize the university, but this needs lots of setup. We can create a shared digital archive so what we’ve learned about political advocacy doesn’t vanish at graduation and build cross-campus coalitions with peers at other Texas universities. Student organizations with shared values should cultivate connections and collaborate on projects rather than remain insulated. Pressure is most effective when it comes from a united front, not as “temporary” damage control.
Pressure is most effective when it comes from a united front, not as “temporary” damage control.
Campus campaigns, such as food insecurity, campus sustainability or fights against program cuts remain essential. However, they must be connected to the broader struggle of attacks against higher education. Similarly, protests are necessary, but insufficient. Protesting, voting and campus activism matter only when they are part of a coordinated effort to build sustained change. If we genuinely want to win, we must devise a strategy for long-term student empowerment. The issues harming student success are a symptom of Texas’ broader strategy: weaken universities and wear down resistance.
We can continue to put out fires as they arise, but lasting victories require a collective memory of past student struggles, coordinated action by student groups and adjusted strategies that account for our current political climate. Our state legislature may sit in Austin, but the consequences are here at UTD. If we want to create an empowered campus that is democratically managed by students, faculty and staff, it begins with us. The first step is building community. If you are a student looking to get involved, attend a general meeting with one of the progressive campus organizations and try starting from there. Many groups advertise on Instagram for ease of access. If you are in a student organization or leading one, organize a meeting with at least two other organizations and discuss how you can collaborate to effect greater change.
One Comment
beautifully said and much needed