As a woman whose hobbies include trying to avoid harassment, I’m pretty confident in my ability to assess the threat level of a situation and respond accordingly.
So as I took my usual route to class past the Armstrong Student Center, I thought I was prepared. After all, you could spot the giant banner a mile away, its yellow and black font stark against the blue October sky. You could hear the man’s religious tirade, his hateful list of everyone he thought would burn in hell for their alleged sins.
Still, I thought that I was safe. In my jeans and full-length t-shirt, I thought I could just slip by this deranged protester and go about my business.
Instead, as I crossed in front of him, the man lifted his megaphone and screamed, “YOU’RE A WHORE.”
He yelled this at nearly every woman who dared to get within 40 feet of Armstrong, regardless of what they looked like (not that it should matter, anyway). It didn’t stop there. He yelled at people who were of visibly different faiths, and those who had clothes or pins that supported LGBTQ+ initiatives.
But because of free speech laws, nobody could stop him.
Let’s be clear: I like the First Amendment. As a student journalist, especially one who writes in the opinion section, I rather enjoy protected speech, press, assembly and all that jazz.
So when I say that your freedom of speech is making me uncomfortable, I really point to the crazy religious protesters outside of Armstrong Student Center (and the people who argue with them).
It’s a sad truth for those of us trying to get to class in a normal, un-harassed way: the sidewalk outside of Armstrong is public property, and therefore free for the use of demonstrations. Maybe you have seen the political activists before the election or the Celcius ambassador people handing out free merchandise.
Those users are generally fine. What fills me with dread is when our Armstrong sidewalk has been taken over by the aforementioned religious zealots and their massive signs proudly proclaiming that basically everyone is going to hell.
Again, I know they have the right to be there. But it’s a little awkward when you’re just trying to get to class and some random person screams at you, especially when he’s screaming that you’re a whore and that he can’t wait for you to burn forever.
For me, this crosses the line, more so than any other protest on Miami’s campus.
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I hate that while we’re at school, we still have to dodge some alt-right losers with nothing better to do than scream at college students. It’s weird and uncomfortable, and I’d say it’s less free speech and more outright harassment.
Still, I have found that the best thing to do is keep my head down and not engage. Even when they call me names. Even when they stand for things I’m actively against.
Trust me, I want them to leave. I just know arguing with them isn’t going to change their minds, and will probably result in even more hateful things spewing from their mouths.
However, that doesn’t stop some people from actively going at it with these demonstrators. As is their protected right, they will scream back at the religious people, getting into arguments and often pretty graphic ones.
I agree with a lot of what these counter-protesters are saying. But I also think that the best way of fighting back is by ignoring them. They (that is, the people calling us whores and worse) thrive off of attention. They love to prove the people they claim as damned are just as irrational and hot-tempered as they promise.
So yes, their freedom of speech makes me uncomfortable. But I’m used to that. So let’s focus our time and energy on advocating for marginalized students on campus, for coming out and supporting DEI events. Let’s not waste our time on people who don’t deserve it.
These religious protesters are not going anywhere. They will continue to scream horrible things about people and their identities, and they will spread lies and hate. But we don’t have to give them the attention they crave. By taking away their platform, by helping on-campus initiatives that stand for what the protesters hate, we hold a much better chance at making the world better than by arguing with them.
Parker Green is a first-year English literature and strategic communication major. She’s a tour guide and member of several student organizations, including The Student. When Parker isn’t doing academic or extracurricular work, you can usually find her reading or having a movie night with friends.
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