A Protest, Ongoing
About the Interviews
Interviews with important historical players who were involved in the 1996 ethnic studies protests provide a fuller picture of April 1996. What was going on in the minds of students were fasting, marching, and occupying buildings? How did the African American, Latinx, Asian American and Native American student protestors create solidarity amongst themselves? What stories were mis- or under- represented by the media that needs to be retold?
Compiling this oral history archive feels especially critical as we celebrate the 25 year anniversary of the April 1996 strike. The students of 1996 have gone on to become activists, scholars, community leaders and mentors who have the say in their respective fields. It is an inspiration to learn how the 1996 ethnic studies protests not only brought changes to Columbia's academia but also went on to impact each of their paths.
* Update: More interview(s) were added as this website began gaining traffic from interested scholars!
Interview with Marcel Agüeros
Marcel Agüeros was one of the main student activists who had continuously advocated for a Latin American Studies curriculum leading up to 1996. When other options were exhausted, he became one of the hunger strikers who camped out in front of Butler Lawn to bring administrators to the negotiating table. He was a senior majoring in astronomy at the time, now a professor in Columbia's astronomy department.
“[We needed to] carve out spaces for people of color at Columbia […] not just in terms of their presence in the classroom, but their presence in the curriculum.”
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“My expectation was that I'm going to be sitting here on strike for for however long it takes [...] I think I was scared for at least the first 24 to 48 hours and then, I wasn't scared anymore.”
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"The impatience of youth - we need that impatience, we need that passion.
We need that desire to see things change not tomorrow, but now."
Interview with Irene HongPing Shen
Irene HongPing Shen, CC '97, was part of the Asian American student activists who initiated a school-wide coalition among the African American, Latinx, and Asian American organizations for a curriculum in ethnic studies. She participated in the Low Library and Hamilton Hall occupation as well as numerous teach-ins and rallies, playing a major role in the protests of 1996.
“We were trying to fight for [...] a historical recognition of the contributions of people of color in this country [being] situated in a community of color as a very privileged institution - it was almost like we're denying the actual history of the place where we’re located”
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“But once he saw the power of what we could actually do - we had enough of a critical mass that we could put our bodies on the line - and I remembered his shift from being terrified to empowered.”
Interview with Eugenia Zuroski
Eugenia Zuroski, CC'98*, was a sophomore during the time of the April 1996 protests. She talks about how she came to Columbia as an English major, unaware of the existence of the struggle of creating an ethnic studies discipline, until she found herself moved by the messages and the hunger strike on April 1st. She quickly became an active part of the protest for ethnic studies.
“It was the first time I realized the way that Columbia understood its relationship to the community of Harlem […] keep[ing] people of color from the community off campus […] its safety was racialized.”
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“Political activism was not at odds with my education [...] It was the kind of learning that I actually went to school to try to do."
Interview with Sung E (Jane) Bai
As a Ph.D. student at Columbia during the 1996 protests,
Jane Sung E Bai was among the "nucleus" of the ethnic studies activists who strategized throughout the hunger strike, sit-ins, and negotiations. She recollects the challenges she faced from the first Asian American Studies student coalition to the final decision to sign the administration's proposal, which profoundly influenced her own academic path onward. As an organizer and activist of her own community, she explains how the very causes she fought for 25 years ago are still, and perhaps even more, relevant today.
“Every one of those students had the right to an education about the United States […] [a] history that has been deliberately ignored, left out, put to the side.”
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“We had many, many long meetings into the night because it was so important […] to be able to come to the table on what we believed [was] important.”
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“...I walked over to a mailbox and I submitted my withdrawal form from Columbia from my Ph.D program [...] I had seen too much to come back next semester into just being a student."
Interview with Daniel Alarcón
Daniel Alarcón, CC'99, took active part in the 1996 student protests as a college freshman. He recalls various anecdotes from taking part in an ongoing historical moment of Columbia and student protests, as well as commemorate the protest leadership that taught him so much about protest and activism on campus.
(Update: This video was uploaded after the final stages of thesis development. This video does not have a transcript.)
Transcript
For the purposes of the project, author did NOT include full versions of the interview transcript. However, viewers may access a full transcript upon request. Please note that you may not distribute or publicize the transcript without the explicit permission of the interviewees and interviewer. Only academic uses are permitted. For accessibility, please refer to the embedded subtitles on Youtube.