Protest at a Restaurant and get college credits !

Leftist Group Gives University of Michigan Students College Credit to Protest Restaurants


Well if you attend the University of Michigan, you can earn credits while protesting under the "supervision" of
The Restaurant Opportunities Center

The Restaurant Opportunities Center is an organization that supports workers rights for restaurant workers.

Republicans in Michigan are attempting to end the college credit program.

An attempt by Republican lawmakers to make the University of Michigan cease support for a liberal interest group is creating a nationwide response from university professors.

The Restaurant Opportunities Center, which one lobbyist describes as "the ACORN of the restaurant industry," has been using U of M students as protesters. The students attend weekly protests of targeted restaurants and gain class credit.

State Rep. Joe Haveman added a provision preventing this practice to an education budget bill. Effectively, if the bill passed reconciliation, the Univ. of Michigan would have to cut ties to the ROC or risk losing nearly $5 million in funding. But 134 professors from around the country have signed a letter calling this an "infringement on academic freedom." Meanwhile, Republican Rep. Bob Genetski supports the measure, saying, "As we see it, students can receive internship credit for basically shaking down Michigan businesses."

The fight stems from a 15-month labor dispute between restaurant chain Andiamo and the Restaurant Opportunities Center. Every Friday, students earning credit would protest outside the restaurant. The dispute was settled in March 2011, but attorneys for both sides refused to comment on details of the case, citing "legal stipulations."

Like they say, "Let Freedom Ring" ...

What a total friggen crock. There is NO WAY some protesters for any cause should be getting the same form of credits I'm thinking of sleep as a distant memory other people do and working myself blind on school work to EARN. That is flat out wrong and really going too far in crossing political activism with Higher Education. Credits are Credits and handing them out like cupie dolls at the county fair is not right.

It is rather interesting that a restaurant lobby group added the this the bill to "ban" the internship. It's also rather concerning that the rep that added the provision doesn't seem to know what it is about. I wonder how much he was paid to do that? He should be impeached for incompetence.

State Rep. Joe Haveman added the provision at the behest of a restaurant industry lobbyist, but acknowledged in a recent committee meeting he doesn't know what the rule concerns.

Tucked in the House education budget at the request of the Michigan Restaurant Association is a provision prohibiting universities from collaborating with "a non-profit worker center whose documented activities include coercion through protest, demonstration or organization against a Michigan business."

^THAT IS WHAT BREIBART SHOULD BE WRITING
ABOUT! Not an internship, but actual real corruption.

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Well it is an internship that is relevant to the educational path that the student is pursuing then what is the issue? Most majors have scholarship programs.

The Joint Doctoral Program in Social Work and Social Science is an interdepartmental program in the Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studies. It awards a joint PhD degree in social work and one of five social science disciplines: anthropology, economics, political science, psychology, and sociology.

It accepted its first students in 1957 and was the first program of its kind. Affording students the opportunity for individualized study with internationally recognized scholars in a wide variety of research domains in social work and social science, the Joint Doctoral Program is broadly acknowledged as one of the finest interdisciplinary programs in the world.

ssw.umich.edu...

It just sounds like the state is trying to regulate what students can major in if they don't agree with it.

It is not like the business that the interns are protesting isn't guilty of worker mis-doings. I'm pretty sure the internship has a lot more than protesting as well since the organization does a lot more than protest.

The university professors' association has sent lawmakers a letter signed by 134 university faculty and administrators from across the country opposed to the funding stipulation.

State Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Detroit, said Republican lawmakers are caving to business interests without considering past allegations of Andiamo violating labor laws.

In July 2010, Andiamo settled allegations with the National Labor Relations Board that it illegally retaliated against two former employees. The company promised not to "call our employees liars" and "not engage in surveillance" of workers, according to a report from the labor board's Detroit office. The company also agreed to give one worker $30 in unpaid wages.

www.detroitnews.com...|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE

We no longer have a Society based on what is right and what is wrong. It's all about finding, or creating, the loop-hole to take advantage of every single situation. What has happened to ethics.
What used to considered strong, is now viewed as weak.....Ethics...becoming extinct.

I fear for our Country...

Des

reply to post by Destinyone


What does this have to do with loop holes or ethics? The internship directly correlates with the major, like all internships must for you to earn credits. From what I have read about the situation at least.

ssw.umich.edu...

The last thing you should do is take Breibarts interpretation of events as reality or factual. It is propagandized sensationalist similar to Fox, except even more right wing.

reply to post by RealSpoke


IMHO...here, we have the muddy waters of Educational Institutes blurring into political lawmaking. Self-serving organizations *using* the guise of educational advancement, to apply pressure for non-educational goals.

I've never seen *picket line 101* on the itinerary of a University.

Des

reply to post by xuenchen

To think, all those years sweating inorganic chem, organic chem, biology, neuro biology, calc, analytical trig, statistics, WASTED!

I could have been carrying a damned sign and graduated!

My bad.

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


But it goes with the major...

Community Organization is a program at the University of Michigan School of Social Work for people committed to social justice and community change in a diverse society.

The program develops skills to:

Organize groups for social action;
Plan programs at the local level;
Develop community-based services; and
Involve people in decisions that affect their lives

ssw.umich.edu...

reply to post by beezzer


That's just ridiculous. Every accredited university/college recquires you to take math/english/science plus your major's focus classes.

reply to post by RealSpoke

Then they can go observe the protest. Read about them.... Heck, even sit with the media to get the closest perspective possible. I can't believe this is actually a subject line for credit, but whatever these days.

My problem still isn't changed. It's protesting FOR and actual cause to benefit a real life organization and cause. How? Protesting. What does protesting do? Gives the impression A LOT of people are sincerely and personally upset enough to come out and show it.

What is actually occurring? The 'crowds' are at least partially made up of kids whose primary interest is pulling a respectable grade in class. ....and still, earning college credits for being the protest participants? Cheap, low class and downright wrong.

Originally posted by beezzer
reply to post by xuenchen

 

To think, all those years sweating inorganic chem, organic chem, biology, neuro biology, calc, analytical trig, statistics, WASTED!

I could have been carrying a damned sign and graduated!

My bad.

Yep.

And I wonder if some of those students will get an MBA and become restaurant managers

reply to post by Destinyone


It isn't picket line 101, it's social work 101

And you can see all the other internships available, there's quite a few. So just ban them all right...because someone somewhere must disagree with the message?

ssw.umich.edu...

Originally posted by RealSpoke
reply to post by Destinyone

 

It isn't picket line 101, it's social work 101

And you can see all the other internships available, there's quite a few. So just ban them all right...because someone somewhere must disagree with the message?

ssw.umich.edu...

Don't put words in my mouth. I agree some internships are beneficial for students. Some, like this one...are blatant trading grades for bodies on a picket line. Big difference.

Des

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


I understand that aspect of it, but this is what the kids are going to college for and they have multiple internships to pick from. I'm pretty sure most of the kids that internship that end up protesting, actually agree with the ideology of the organization. I would also assume that the main focus of the internship is the community organizing aspect of it and not solely the protest.

reply to post by RealSpoke

I'm willing to bet the people BEING protested see a very large and serious distinction between those who are on a picket line and walking for direct issues with that business and every Tom, Dick and Harry to be pressed into service and inflate the numbers by appearance. In this case, within an internship for credit.

You know, I could even respect it a little bit if it were a true internship into the world of organizing and directing protest...and by that I mean, working inside the upper levels that make the whole thing happen along side the guys that are actually leading the groups at the top. Not strolling the line with a sign.

One is College level work, in my personal opinion. The other is being an activist and having a good time for hard earned credit in anyone else's book.

In fairness,

maybe some "credits" should be required for the other side of the street.

maybe the students should be required to actually "work".

like maybe as kitchen helpers.

That alone may help prepare them for their future jobs !!

reply to post by xuenchen


You're sounding like Che Guevara with those types of ideas

reply to post by Destinyone


I didn't put words in your mouth. I posed you a question.
The source article says they staged the protest and work with the group, it doesn't say the internship-ees actually protest.

Lansing— A labor group's use of college students to stage Friday night protests outside an Italian restaurant in Dearborn could cost the University of Michigan millions in taxpayer funding.

U-M's connection is its School of Social Work internship in community activism, which lets students receive internship credit for working with the workers' organization, said Justin Winslow, vice president of governmental affairs at the Michigan Restaurant Association.

reply to post by Wrabbit2000


I agree with that. But the source article states what they did is exactly what you proposed they should be doing.

Lansing— A labor group's use of college students to stage Friday night protests outside an Italian restaurant in Dearborn could cost the University of Michigan millions in taxpayer funding.

Key word staged. This is why you cannot trust Breibart it is half dis-info half sensationalist.

www.detroitnews.com...

reply to post by RealSpoke

(sigh)

Your missing the problem. In the Corporate Offices of the AFL-CIO and their Public Outreach division or whatever they call the arm that organizes the protests / direct public action events or even state levels of the Education Unions inside their offices and with their direct action people at the organisation level, it would be college work.

When's the last time the people in the Offices of the AFL-CIO were personally walking endless circles in the crummy parking lot of some specific workplace when it wasn't for Photo ops or a media event?

Are these people earning degrees to go stroll a picket line? I certainly hope professional protester isn't the goal. This is bad as it is, but if a few rungs higher than sign walker isn't the starting point, what was the college education and related cost for exactly?

Originally posted by RealSpoke
reply to post by Wrabbit2000

 

I agree with that. But the source article states what they did is exactly what you proposed they should be doing.

Lansing— A labor group's use of college students to stage Friday night protests outside an Italian restaurant in Dearborn could cost the University of Michigan millions in taxpayer funding.

Key word staged. This is why you cannot trust Breibart it is half dis-info half sensationalist.

www.detroitnews.com...

So perhaps some people might interpret the word "stage" in the paragraph to mean a stage like in an auditorium for a play or something ?

I read the Detroit news article as they actually took an active role in the protesting at the restaurants.

If these protests (more than one evidently) were some kind of school exercise, the business associations and politicians wouldn't be trying to stop it.....I think.

The protesting itself is fine and legal.

The issue is the college "credits".

Other side issues can be thought of also.

There's money involved. Millions of dollars apparently.