ACTIVISM at
THE CLAREMONT COLLEGES
SEVEN WORLDS OF STUDENT
DEMONSTRATIONS SPANNING 130+ YEARS
Located at the foot of the San Gabriel Mountains in Southern California,
The Claremont Colleges——Claremont McKenna, Harvey Mudd, Pitzer, Pomona, and Scripps Colleges, alongside Claremont Graduate University and Keck Graduate Institute——are an "extreme educational rarity," as Claremont McKenna Professor Ward Elliott once described.
From Claremont McKenna's "conservative bastion" of veterans returning from WWII to Pitzer's "social justice" praxis established at the peak of the Civil Rights Movement, each college was founded with a unique mission. Today, consortium students can collaborate with seven "worlds of political discourse truly different from one another."
1880s - 1950s
Early Years of Student Resistance
Demonstration activity between Pomona's founding in 1887 to the 1930s is largely undocumented—or perhaps, never occurred due to collegiate doctrines like in loco parentis.¹ It appears that students may have joined movements hosted outside of institutional contexts, like Henry Haskell PO '35 and his 1933 attempt to picket with Los Angeles garment workers seeking to unionize. His arrest by the Los Angeles Police Department was shared widely among the student body.² It also seems that student demonstration did not concern national affairs (for instance, there is no mention of the suffrage or temperance movements in Pomona's historical record book). However, students did direct their efforts to administrative decisions. As early as 1893, Pomona seniors sought to petition for their choice of commencement speaker.³ In 1934, 400 students signed to extend their winter break.⁴ Even faculty retention was a matter for appeal, with 61 students signing a request for Professor Charles Neely to teach another year.⁵ The Student Life too was a medium for protest, including a battle between "We Are Four" (seniors who published criticisms of Pomona's advisors and career services) and their respondents (students who criticized the Four for neglecting the liberal arts).⁶
The Civil Rights Movement
Not much is known about the particulars of demonstrations the Colleges experienced during the Civil Rights Movement, with even less pictures to show for it. However, it is evident that Claremont students were active, with Pomona students in particular being some of the many youth who participated in demonstrations during summers in the South.¹ In fact, when students Candice Anderson PO '61 and Barbara Biggar '62 were arrested for participating in a sit-in in Nashville, The Student Life sent staff writer Andrew Jaffe PO '60 to Nashville to document the student movements. He and Biggar returned to speak about their observations to an audience of 250 students in 1960.² As for institutional action, Pomona established an exchange program with Fisk University—a historically Black liberal arts college—as early as the academic year 1952-53.¹ The school also held a three-day Conference on Civil Equality in the spring of 1964—what Pomona President E.W. Lyon described as an "outpouring of racial cooperation...in the spirit of Martin Luther King."³ In the summer of 1964, a group of students and faculty stayed in a small Mississippi town, registering Black voters and improving public health efforts.⁴
The Interwar Years
It was in the interwar years that students (of Pomona alongside the new graduate school and Scripps College) first seemed to question political leadership and national decision-making. Largely, this skepticism did not manifest in outright marches or rallies, though Claremont students did host a number of discussions and debates. For instance, in April 1937, the Claremont Colleges joined a nationwide "Student Demonstration Against War." Scripps planned a day of discussion, including a faculty address and informal conversation hosted in a dorm recreation room on questions like "Would You Support a War to Preserve Democracy Against...Fascism?"¹ Some of these panels were quite notable, including the Colleges' decision to join UCLA and CalTech to host a "Program in the Interest of Public Opinion." On February 27, 1932, the Pasadena venue was expected to seat 3,000 to watch Dr. Robert Millikan, Dr. Charles Beard, and Professor Albert Einstein discuss world peace.² Even President Herbert Hoover sent a message of approval to the Southern California College Student Body President Association for sponsoring the event.³
Women in Frary Dining Hall
In 1957, Pomona's Frary Dining Hall began allowing women to dine on Fridays. This sparked protests from male students, who argued that it was inappropriate for women to eat beneath José Clemente Orozco's 1930 mural of a nude Prometheus. Pomona's women counterprotested. The 1957 Metate yearbook documented the events on a page titled "REVOLT!", featuring notable protest signs. The men's signs included messages like "A MAN'S DINING HALL IS HIS CASTLE" and "WOMEN GO HOME," while women displayed signs such as "WE LIKE PROMETHEUS. SO DOES MOM."¹ Seemingly (and amusingly), this was one of the first student rallies at the Colleges.
WWI
Between 1914 and 1918, students rallied to support American efforts in World War I. Institutionally, Pomona set up a Student Army Training Corps (SATC) to train newly enlisted young men for military service.¹ Remaining men were required to replace physical education courses with military training, supplementing this regimen with coursework on military drill, military science, and Red Cross courses. Women of the college were equally active, hosting a May masquerade for an audience of 2,000 for the benefit of the Red Cross.² On Armistice Day on November 11, 1918, The Student Life headline was simply "VICTORY," with the pages documenting festivities as students flooded the streets of Claremont. Men of the SATC were offered acceptances to Pomona as full-time students.³
A Boycott of Japanese Goods
One student movement firmly advanced during this interwar period was organized by a 1932 student group named "Pomona College Student Society for the Promulgation of a Boycott Against Japanese-made Goods."¹ The Student Life editor Ed Balmer, a supporter of the group, insisted against its detractors that there was "no grudge against the Japanese people," but rather, a distrust of Japanese actions in Manchuria and the fear of "another world war."² The boycott resolution had already amassed over 200 signatures by February 26, 1932, when American Political Science Association head Dr. Charles Beard signed the resolution as well.³ By March 12th, the Japanese government had even sent an inquiry to the League of Nations regarding the boycott.⁴
WWII
World War II saw a similar outpouring of support in the consortium as the colleges once again settled into wartime. Alongside specialized classes and drill regimens, Pomona also opted to join other colleges to enlist cadets for meteorological training.¹ On the student front, Scripps women were especially effective, selling war stamps and bonds during, maintaining a victory garden, and rationing meat and butter in the dining halls.² A notable student gathering occurred on April 1942, just as Japanese-Americans on the West Coast were set to be interned. Pomona President E.W. Lyon arranged with Oberlin College for the transfer of junior Itsue "Sue" Hisanaga Yamaguchi PO '43. President Lyon and Pomona students accompanied her and her brother, Kazuo "Casey" Hisanage PO '42, to the train station.³ The Pomona Band played as the two siblings departed, with Yamaguchi recollecting, "It seemed like all Pomona was there" to say goodbye.⁴ After the war, students started becoming more vocal; in November 1945, students and faculty gathered to amend the National Atom Bomb Petition in order to send a new resolution based on "faith and realism" to President Truman and Congressman Voorhis.⁵
Word of Harry Haskell's PO '35 picketing and arrest published in The Student Life, November 1933.
"The Four" express dissatisfaction with Pomona (left) while "The Two" defend the school (right) in a heated exchange in The Student Life, June 1933.
Student Army Training Corps cadets march during Armistice Day (wearing masks to prevent the spread of the 1918 Spanish Flu), November 1918.
The Colleges join UCLA and CalTech to host an esteemed panel to discuss peace, February 1932.
Alum and former The Student Life staff writer Relman Morin PO '29 criticizes Pomona's Japanese boycott resolution, March 1932.
Pomona men demonstrate against women's presence at Frary Dining Hall, circa 1957.
Scripps women hosting an event with soldiers, March 1942.
The Student Life describes the arrest of Barbara Biggar PO '62 (left) and Candice Anderson PO '61 (right), March 1960.
1960s - 1970s
Pro-Vietnam (top) and Anti-Vietnam (bottom) protestors clash in 1965 march. Note: video footage can be seen on the British Pathe's website, see here.
The Vietnam War
Alongside more targeted movements (see below), the Colleges saw countless demonstrations regarding the Vietnam War. In 1965, views on the war were far more mixed, as students participated in large pro- and anti-war rallies¹ and hosted policy debates between both Dove and Hawk intellectuals.² A few years later in 1968, the opinion began to sway, with the Black Student Union and Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) organizing a 200-person march protesting pro-war presidential candidates.³ In May 1969, the group Faculty and Students Together hosted a "Vietnam War Weekend," featuring film screenings, lectures by anti-war figures (including New Left activist Tom Hayden), and a concert with protest singer Phil Ochs.⁴ On October 15, 1969, during Moratorium Day, 2000 students, faculty, and residents of Claremont participated in teach-ins and a candlelit march through town.⁵ Surprisingly, the Colleges also took an institutional stance, sending five administrators and ten consortium students to Washington, D.C to present effects of the war on college campuses. They met with high level officials including Daniel Moynihan, an advisor to President Nixon at the time.⁶
Graduating males told to find their grave on "War Weekend," May 1969.
Faculty were vocal too, HMC Prof. George Wickes and family, circa 1966.
Anti-ROTC Sentiment, Sit-ins to Molotov Cocktails
The Colleges' Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC), housed at CMC, prepared students for military service following graduation. In 1967, students interrupted ROTC training with a sign that stated "Forgive them for they know not what they do."¹ Tensions boiled over after Nixon's invasion of Cambodia in 1970. A group of 50 protestors attempted to enter the ROTC office in Bauer Hall on May 4, 1970 at 4:30am. The group was stopped by approximately 15 CMC and HMC students who linked arms to prevent protestors entering. After attempting to break windows and get past the campus security that also arrived, the protestors dispersed. However, by 8am, they regrouped, entering Bauer's registrar's office and announced their demands: prohibit the registrar from notifying draft boards when students graduate or drop out, divest from all war-related industries, and remove the ROTC from the Claremont Colleges. By 9am, they sat in President Howard Neville's in Bauer, with their "love-in" lasting 14 hours.² That June, a "primitive incendiary device" was found in a ceiling on Bauer's second floor. Though the explosive did not detonate, on January 5, 1971 at around 3:00am, a molotov cocktail thrown into the ROTC office proved to be quite destructive. No one was injured, but the damage costed $1500.³
Community discussion on US invasion of Cambodia by Scripps students, circa 1970. Note: meetings and debates seemed to be as common as protests especially by Scripps students, see here.
Students, organized by the Black Student Union and the Students for a Democratic Society, protest the 1968 presidential candidates, circa 1968.
The Air Force Visits Pomona's Sumner Hall
In February 1968, two Air Force recruiters were met by 150 students marching throughout Sumner Hall and 79 students (49 from Pomona) occupying the career placement office and adjacent corridor. In total, 49 students were tried by the judicial board, which ultimately found them guilty but also suspended their suspensions.¹ Furthermore, all recruiter visits to the Pomona placement office were cancelled until February 1969.² This was not the first time students interrupted the Pomona placement office's duties. According to Harry Stein PO '70, in 1967, eight to ten antiwar students invaded the placement office to prevent Dow Chemical representatives—makers of napalm—from speaking.³ When Pomona administrators asserted that all career interests were welcome, the students filed a prank request for the Communist Party of Northern California to send its recruiters.⁴ Even as early as 1961, students set up a "conscientious objector" table opposite a Marine recruiter's, with a sign saying "There are alternatives" and flyers for distribution. Even the recruiter described it as a "tasteful demonstration."⁵
Left: to protest ROTC and the war draft, students swarm Bauer Hall while others camp outside for 14 hours, May 1970.
Right: Air Force recruiters surrounded by anti-war students, February 1968.
Anti-war protestors march alongside ROTC members, circa 1967.
A "Fake Protest"
Following the bombing of Cambodia in 1969, a regional station, KNBC, caught word of a protest taking place at the Colleges. Allegedly, KNBC brought "pre-made protest posters," believing the students wouldn't be prepared to demonstrate. As Neil Yeager CM '70 recollected, "students didn't take very kindly to…[those]...suggest[ing] that we couldn't run our own protest." Students rallied to make new signs, not protesting the Cambodian bombing, but the performativity of KNBC—including "This is a real sign" and "NBC is putting us on."¹
Students call KNBC for their attempt to stage a student demonstration, circa 1969.
Protests erupt for an "autonomous BSC," including by faculty--most prominently Scripps faculty (right) for Provost Curtis was also Scripps's president, circa 1969.
An essay by BSU leader John Payton PO '73--later head of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund--discussing racism at the Colleges, circa 1969.
A Black Studies Center
In spring 1967, the Colleges' Black Student Union (BSU) was formed. From 1967-69, the BSU successfully urged the Colleges to increase Black admission and offer Black Studies courses. In January 1969, the BSU proposed an autonomous Black Studies Center (BSC) to not only formalize the Colleges' proposed Black Studies major, but also support Black students experiencing discrimination or academic hardship. However, opposition from faculty and persistent delays resulted in frustration.¹ In February, 400 students met in Pomona's Walker Lounge to discuss teach-ins, rallies, and a "day of conscience" to raise awareness.² In March, BSU led a strike, with founder Danny Wilks PO '71 stating that rallies will replace classes until "the issue is settled."³ 500 students also occupied the office of Provost Mark Curtis—one of the most vocal critics of ethnic studies centers for both Black and Chicano students.⁴ Eventually, the administrations yielded in a 60-9 vote, announcing plans for a BSC in April. Today, the BSC is the Intercollegiate Department of Africana Studies.⁵
Chicano Demands
In the fall of 1968, Chicano students organized a Claremont chapter of the national United Mexican-American Students (UMAS). Through rallies and petitions, the group spurred the addition of Chicano Studies courses, the creation of the Chicano Admissions Recruitment Office, and the introduction of "Chicano Day" for students in local barrio high schools by 1969. Occasionally, UMAS's achievements were a result of coordination with the Black Student Union. For example, the two groups met jointly with CMC administrators in February 1969.¹ However, they also sought to preserve a distinct identity, presenting their proposals in formal meetings (consisting of 100+ faculty and students) and even at prominent opposition Provost Mark Curtis's home.²
Story House in ruin after an accidental fire, though rumored arson, February 1969.
UMAS holds a four-day conference with the theme "Challenge," featuring keynote speaker and activist "Corky" Gonzales, April 1969.
Suspected Arson at CMC's Story House
Story House, a dorm and dining commons, was CMC's only building during its first year and remained its most prominent structure. On February 17, 1969, Story House was severely damaged by fire, with the Claremont Fire Department naming a faulty steam pipe as the cause.¹ An investigation by The Student Life—even consisting of interviews of the Pomona Chemistry Department—determined that arson was a likely possibility.² The origins and/or perpetrators of the blaze remain unknown to this day. It is important to note however, that the incident took place during the height of protests in favor of the Black and Chicano studies centers. As CMC Government Professor Ward Elliott later reported, the fire occurred six days after a "Black militant" from Pomona asked the CMC faculty, "'Do you want this campus burned down this summer or next summer?'"³
Pomona's Carnegie and Scripps's Balch Halls Bombed
On February 26, 1969, a shrapnel bomb exploded in the Politics Department in Pomona's Carnegie Hall, with department secretary Mary Ann Keatley losing part of her right hand and suffering severe eye injuries. The explosive was in a professor's mailbox, contained within a shoebox wrapped in brown paper. Shortly after, a second bomb exploded in Scripps's Balch Hall, with no casualties reported. Despite a thorough investigation by the Los Angeles County Sheriff and Claremont Police, the perpetrator(s) and motives remain unknown.¹ Given the previous Story House blaze and heightened scrutiny of students of color, the Colleges moved 65 Black and Chicano students off of campus to protect them from false accusation, or worse, retaliation.²
Black students were first to be suspected in the bombings, with BSU leader Danny Wilks insisting to that BSU played no role and expressing concern for BSU-faculty relations, February 1969.
1980s - 1990s
South African Apartheid
As early as April 1979, students discovered that Pomona invested at least $5 million¹ in South African companies—a figure that appears to have risen to $13 million in 1985.² Throughout the '80s, students discovered that all the Colleges had similar investments, sparking a movement for divestment. These efforts were varied, consisting of marches, student-wide referendums, and faculty lectures and teach-ins. As early as 1982, the Associated Students of Pomona College released an initiative in which three-in-four students voted for divestment.³ In 1985, the group Students Against Apartheid led a 100-person march throughout the Colleges, stopping at each president's office to demand divestment.⁴ However, it was in 1987 that protests intensified, as 40 students set up "shanty dorms" outside of Pomona President David Alexander's home.⁵ These efforts were partially successful, Pitzer and Claremont Graduate School (now known as Claremont Graduate University) divested a portion of their holdings in 1986.⁶
Protests (left) and "shanty dorms" (right), with a student exchanging words with President Alexander (top), circa 1985-87.
Ronald Reagan's Claremont Campaign Stop
In fall 1980, presidential candidate Ronald Reagan made a campaign stop at the Claremont Colleges upon invitation from CMC's Rose Institute of State and Local Government. Alongside a crowd of 4,000, Reagan also confronted a group of 100-200 protestors carrying signs like "Reagan for Shah" and "Enough Smog? Enough of Reagan!" Most demonstrators came alone, independent of a planned protest from the College Democrats or Students for Anderson (though the Colleges' women's groups officially organized, carrying coat hangers throughout Reagan's speech). At one point, Reagan responded to "Heil Reagan" chants by stating "if it wasn't for our generation, they'd be saying, "Heil, somebody.'"¹ After his victory, Claremont students continued to demonstrate. For instance, the Colleges' Coalition for Reproductive Freedom was founded shortly after the election, rallying 200 students on Inauguration Day, 1981.²
Protestors in a cordoned-off area (left) as Reagan speaks to a crowd of 4,000 (right), October 1980.
A Racist Flyer Discovered in Honnold Library
In November 1988, students came across two flyers in the Colleges' Honnold Library with words "America's Black Whores--1988 edition," depicting racist caricatures of prominent Black figures.¹ A week of demonstrations ensued, including a petition amassing 500 signatures to raise awareness of minority student struggles, a 13-hour sit-in and vigil hosted by the Black Student Union, and "eat-ins" at the dining halls. This culminated in a Friday rally and march, with 450 students watching and cheering student lecturers from Black, Latino, Asian, disabled, and religious student groups.²
Hundreds gather to celebrate diversity in a rally capping off a week of demonstrations, December 1988.
One of the catalysts for renewed protests demanding diversity and equity, March 1969.
Students, likely with the Liberation Through Education Coalition, outside Alexander Hall, February 1993.
CA Proposition 209 Ends Affirmative Action
In 1996, Californians passed Proposition 209, which ended affirmative action programs in public employment, education, and contracting. Demonstrations ensued, as students distributed flyers on Prop 209's effects, held candlelit vigils, and pulled fire alarms in synchronization with University of California schools.¹ The protests came to a head on November 13th, as CMC's Athenaeum hosted Richard Rodriguez, a prominent critic of affirmative action. Students and demonstrators alike lined up to attend the event, but when informed that there were no more seats, the crowd of about 150 surged.² Allegedly, a struggle occurred between Pitzer Sociology Professor Jose Calderon (a demonstrator himself) and CMC President Jack Stark, with Calderon publishing a letter that he was "shoved" and The Los Angeles Times reporting that Stark "assaulted" Calderon. To heal rifts between CMC and Pitzer, Calderon and Stark agreed to an investigative panel. No legal action was pursued.³
Flyer recounting Landrum's death (top) and ensuing protest at City Hall (bottom), October 1999.
US Aid to El Salvador Decried
In March 1989, "shanty town" was erected and occupied for six days at Pomona to protest the US's aid to the El Salvador government. The students named it "Pueblo Arcatao," after a Salvadoran community. The demonstration culminated in a rally, wherein 60 students, faculty, and Claremont members received lectures on US foreign policy in Central America. The lecturers were comprised mainly of Pomona and Pitzer students and faculty. They primarily argued that US aid was creating overreliance, ignoring humanitarian needs, and contributing to CIA torture programs.¹
Student reads information on US involvement in El Salvador at the shanty town, March 1989.
Renewed Demands for Diversity, Asian Studies
Early in 1993, students became aggrieved by the Colleges' diversity hiring and enrollment. A rumor spread that a search committee for a joint Black Studies/Pomona English position had given up deciding between finalists. A Chicano Studies position was left unfilled and a Black Pomona professor failed to get her contract renewed.¹ Finally, calls were mounting for an Asian/Asian American Studies major.² Resistance to the major had begun earlier that March, when text on Pomona's Walker Free Speech Wall stating "Asian American Studies Now" was vandalized to spell "Asian Americans die."³ In response, from February 1st to 1:30am on the 3rd (43 hours), 100 students of the "Liberation Through Education Coalition" occupied Pomona's Alexander Hall. They gave speeches and held teach-ins on civil disobedience, all while participating in negotiations with administration. Ultimately, an agreement was reached in the last of multiple closed-door meetings at 10:30pm.⁴ Administrators pledged to increase affirmative action programs and tenure-track faculty members of color, with Pomona, Pitzer, and HMC agreeing to establish Asian American Studies.⁵
Students protest Proposition 209 at the Athenaeum, November 1996.
The Shooting of Irvin Landrum Jr.
18-year-old Claremont resident Irvin Landrum Jr. was fatally shot by two officers of the Claremont Police Department during a traffic stop. The incident prompted a civil rights investigation by the US Department of Justice and FBI. In response, 50 protestors comprised of students and faculty demonstrated in front of Claremont City Hall.¹ The Colleges' Intercollegiate Department of Black Studies and the Irvin Landrum Jr. Justice Organizing Committee organized a teach-in the next day, bringing famed civil rights activist Reverend Jesse James as a speaker.² Similar protests occurred in the 2000s, with approximately 400 students, faculty, and Claremont residents marching to City Hall to protest the grand jury's decision to not indict Darren Wilson for the shooting of Michael Brown in December 2014.³ During the George Floyd protests in 2020, because the Colleges operated remotely, Claremont High School students and residents of Claremont protested in their stead.⁴
2000s - Present
Flyer recounting Landrum's death (top) and ensuing protest at City Hall (bottom), April 1999.
Expansion into the Bernard Field Station
The Robert J. Bernard Biological Field Station (BFS) is the Colleges' 85-acre nature preserve and research facility. Intended to supplement biology and environmental science courses, students visit the BFS and the site's Robert Redford Conservancy to research over 214 species of animals and 250 species of plants.¹ In 2000, the city approved the Colleges' controversial plan to build the new Keck Graduate Institute on the BFS, prompting protest.² In February 2001, the city-wide group "Friends of the Bernard Field Station" dropped their lawsuit when the Colleges agreed to preserve 45 acres of the field station for 50 years. However, this deal did not satisfy the Students for the Field Station who believed that even some development could damage the ecosystem.³ In March 2001, around 100 students barricaded the Colleges' main administrative buildings for 28 hours, with several students chaining themselves to the barricades. Nine were arrested on suspicion of trespassing.⁴
Aramark Dining Service Controversy
Up until 2000, the Colleges contracted their dining hall staff through the company Aramark. However, students had been protesting this partnership since 1999, particularly after allegations that Aramark had intimidated its workers in order to prevent a vote on unionization.¹ Notably, in April 1999, 50 students and six Aramark workers marched to Pomona President Peter Stanley's home to present a letter of demands.² The tide turned in the students' favor only in 2000 however. On April 27th, students occupied Pitzer's Broad Center until Pitzer President Marilyn Chapin Massey signed a statement to support the workers' right to organize.³ However, this deal fell through upon discovery that an Aramark catering truck and two carts were vandalized. On May 2nd, the protestors moved to Pomona, chaining themselves to the doors of Alexander Hall and preventing entry.⁴ A negotiation was reached—at least with Pomona administrators—with Pomona terminating its contract with Aramark and hiring its workers as college staff members.⁵
Students in gags protesting the city's approval of expanding into the Bernard Field Station, December 2000.
Christian Torres---one of the 17 fired---speaks to an audience near Pomona's gates, circa 2011.
100+ workers---primarily of the UNITE HERE Local 11 union chapter---march at Pomona, April 2011.
"Our CMC Mold"
In early October 2015, a Mexican-American CMCer published an essay in The Student Life describing the difficulties of being a low-income, minority student on campus. CMC Dean of Students Mary Spellman replied that her office was "working on how we can better serve students, especially those who don't fit our CMC mold." Some were outraged at this phrasing, believing it implied that some must change themselves to belong at CMC. Students protested and participated in hunger strikes, eventually organizing a November 11th demonstration to reiterate demands for the college to hire more minority faculty members and create an Ethnic Studies general education requirement—among others. Following the demonstration, President Hiram Chodosh authorized a diversity and inclusion "leadership position" and Spellman resigned.¹
17 Pomona Dining Hall Workers Fired
In the fall of 2011, Pomona administrators requested proof of legal residency from longtime employees.¹ 17 employees failed to produce these documents and were fired as a result. President David Oxtoby stated he had no choice given the legal constraints, with an investigation finding that the administration "had done nothing wrong."² However, students believed that the lay-offs were nefarious—punishment for Pomona workers previously demanding a fair union voting process.³ Beginning November 30th, an extended vigil was held at Alexander Hall, with students eating, sleeping, and studying outside the building. By December 2nd, around 100 protestors at Frary Dining Hall converged with the Alexander Hall demonstrators. The demonstration ended when 15 students were arrested for blocking the intersection of 4th Avenue and Sixth Street.⁴ The 17 fired workers were not re-hired.³
CMC President Hiram Chodosh and demonstrators look on as student speaks, November 2015.
Heather Mac Donald Visits CMC's Athenaeum
In April 2017, CMC's Athenaeum invited Manhattan Institute scholar and vocal critic of the Black Lives Matter movement, Heather Mac Donald. Though CMC established a designated protest area, 170 students began to block the entrance and exit into the Athenaeum.¹ President Hiram Chodosh noted that despite the small audience in attendance, 250 people watched the event on livestream with the event amassing 1400 views by the next day.² Though the administration submitted their investigation to the leaders of the other colleges, only CMC opted to punish their students—five students were suspended and two were placed on academic probation.³
Protestors block entrance to CMC's Atheneaum as Heather Mac Donald presents, April 2017.
"Drop Sodexo"
Scripps's and HMC's dining service was contracted to Sodexo. In 2020, students began decrying the company for its unfair labor practices, involvement with private prisons and asylums, and food safety issues.¹ Demonstrators, primarily Scripps students, led a number boycotts of Scripps's Malott Dining Hall and organized community meetings with students and administrators. Notably, they amassed over 1,000 petition signatures² and united 50 students in a sit-in of a Sodexo presentation.³ In response, Scripps President Lara Tiedens established the Dining Services Advisory Committee to provide recommendations for Scripps's dining contract.⁴ Scripps College dropped Sodexo as its dining services provider in favor of Bon Appétit Management Company on July 1, 2020.⁵
Scripps 2020 seniors wear "Drop Sodexo" on their graduation caps, May 2020.
50 students conduct a sit-in of a Sodexo presentation, April 2020.
"KKR Kills"
The private equity firm KKR—founded by CMC alumni Henry Kravis CM '67 and George Roberts CM '66—has backed a number of energy companies. In 2019, KKR invested in TC Energy’s Coastal GasLink LP, a Canadian pipeline project that received backlash from the Wet'suwet'en indigenous people. In April 2021, KKR acquired a stake in Sempra Energy which was developing the Mexican Agua Prieta pipeline on Yaquí land. In October 2021, over 100 students protested these investments at CMC's Roberts Pavilion, chanting "Remove their names."¹ In November, students posted posters on the windows of CMC's "The Cube" with the words "KKR Kills."² 2021 had a number of environmental demonstrations, with December seeing a 100-person rally urging the Colleges to divest from fossil fuels.³
Students protest CMC trustees Kravis and Roberts of KKR in front of Roberts Pavilion, October 2021.
Six Months into the Israel-Hamas Conflict
In the fall of 2023, students began protesting Israel's war in Gaza. Among many asks, students primarily demanded the Colleges divest from weapons manufacturers and Israeli companies. By March 2024, protestors had shut down Pomona's annual "Frary Potter Dinner,"¹ organized two "die-ins,"² and interrupted a Pomona admissions event.³ On April 5th, around 100 protestors congregated on the steps of Pomona's Alexander Hall, with a couple dozen entering the hallway and even fewer (around 18) entering Pomona President Gabi Starr's office. After a 911 call from someone in Alexander's offices, two dozen squad cars were dispatched, with police officers carrying riot gear and tear gas launchers. 20 students were arrested for trespassing or for obstruction, with 100 demonstrators following those arrested to the Claremont Jail until their release.⁴ The national Students for Justice in Palestine's record of campus protests indicate that this event was one of the first instances of college administrators calling the police as pro-Palestine protests intensified later in the spring.⁵
Students who refused to leave Alexander Hall were removed by the police (top), April 2024.
Students gather inside Carnegie Hall (top & right) after marching to Pomona's gates (left), October 2024.
The Anniversary of the October 7th Attacks
On October 7, 2024, marking the one-year anniversary of Hamas's attack on Israel, students walked out of classes to demand divestment from Israeli "apartheid."¹ Around 400 converged at the intersection of 6th Street and N. College Avenue. Over 100 of those protestors chose to enter Pomona's Carnegie Hall, disrupting classes from 11am to 3:30pm.² During these hours, protestors zip-tied entrances to lock themselves in, held teach-ins, destroyed AV equipment, and graffitied the floor and walls with text like "From the River to the Sea" and "Intifada."³ By October 12th, 12 Pomona protestors were issued interim suspensions while many non-Pomona protestors were banned from Pomona's campus.⁴ As of November, civil rights groups—including ACLU Southern California—have urged Pomona to revert their suspensions due to their "peremptory manner," among many other injustices.⁵