By Emi Bendler
What started as a man sitting in the middle of the Pentacrest with a few people around him grew into a full-on protest on Wednesday.
Dozens of students staged a walk-out in response to the Senate confirming Betsy DeVos as the secretary of the Education Department.
The event was organized by Brad Pector, a member of Iowa Action and Student Engagement.
He cited DeVos’ lack of qualifications as the main source of his opposition.
“We walk out in opposition to DeVos, in opposition to millions less in already incompetent state funding; we walk out for your dignity as an undergraduate forced to study in a climate that opposes everything higher education should stand for,” Pector said.
Pector was not the only one to express this belief.
University of Iowa graduate student Patty Nash said DeVos’s “egregious lack of qualifications” was her main concern.
A major point brought up during the rally was a reported contribution of $21,600 from the DeVos family to Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa.
Iowa’s two senators, Grassley and Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, both voted in favor of DeVos.
“I believe Betsy DeVos will perform the job of U.S. secretary of Education faithfully and well,” Grassley said in a statement. “There’s been a lot of misinformation that Mrs. DeVos opposes public schools. In fact, she’s committed to being an advocate for great public schools.”
Ernst released a video statement after DeVos’s confirmation, stating that she supports the secretary but will hold DeVos accountable to the standard she has placed upon herself.
“I have heard from folks on both sides of the debate over Betsy DeVos. Good people can disagree with one another and still engage in a civil, productive discourse,” Ernst said in the video.
Landon Elkind, a UI teaching assistant, spoke on behalf of students of all ages. When speaking about graduate students, he stressed the importance of showing them support in the wake of DeVos’ confirmation, in addition to the current struggles with the health-care system.
Regarding the long-term effects of DeVos’ confirmation, he said, “I don’t even have kids, but I’m worried about their future.”
The leaders offered protesters the opportunity to speak their minds.
UI student Luke Kingsbury spoke about student loans. He started out by asking the attendees how many of them had to take out a loan to afford college. The crowd responded with a loud roar.
“It sucks,” he said to the crowd. “Betsy DeVos has never done that.”
He went on to wonder how she was going to understand the students who do have to take out loans when she, nor anyone in her family, had never taken one out for anything.
UI Professor Elizabeth Willis cheered the crowd for participating.
“I love you for showing up to this,” she said, addressing the rally. “Your education is a human right.”
The walkout then turned its focus to UI President Bruce Harreld.
As the rally came to a close, the crowd marched near to Harreld’s office chanting, “President Harreld, speak up.”
Although the protest was mainly focused on DeVos and education, it also focused in on other major issues, such as affordable health care and President Trump’s immigration ban.
“We did hand a petition to Bruce Harreld … specifically about HSB67, [regarding the immigration ban],” Pector said.
Pector and other protesters said they will keep fighting for the things that they believe in.
“We want to turn this moment into a movement,” Pector said.