Student and Iadarola face off over protest

LAUREN MINEO STAFF WRITER

Undoubtedly, times have changed. Some current protestors are accused of being confused about the issues that they so boldly act out upon and some confused about how to act upon the issues.

Two passionate views have risen. One opinion is from a notable member of the Cabrini College community, President Antoinette. Iadarola, who experienced and coordinated anti-war protests in the late I 960s. The other opinion comes from Cabrini junior, Krista Mickalowski, personally affected by the war by knowing a marine currently serving in Iraq. Their backgrounds are very diffeTent, agreeing on some issues and disagreeing on others. One happens to be the protest conducted on the commons of Cabrini's campus on March 26.

President Antoinette Iadarola

Greatly affected by the war in Vietnam, Iadarola spent much of her time exercising her right to protest while a student at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. in the late '60s.

As President of the Graduate Student Association at Georgetown, Iadarola was instrumental in creating a haven for protestors that were no longer allowed to protest in the city. The students were not even safe.

"Helicopters were dropping tear gas canisters into the residence halls, but there was no loss of property and no loss of life," Iadarola said. Their student group provided peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for nourishment, a gym floor to rest upon and Jimmy Johns, or porta-potties, to the protestors.

On another occasion, while walking to a meeting, a canister of tear gas was thrown at Iadarola by a police official. When asked why he attacked her, he replied, "I'm in hot pursuit of an assailant." The assailant was not Iadarola. The meeting that she was headed to was called to decide whether police force should be allowed on campus. He cast her vote for her.

The combined vote resulted in a unanimous decision to not invite police onto Georgetown's campus. It was a life that most students in 2003 would have a difficult time fathoming. The students of almost 40 years ago were roused by their leader, Kennedy.

"Kennedy was more inspirational, for example, when he said, 'Ask not what you can do for your country, but what your country can do for you.' It's not the same with Bush. He's a different kind of president," Iadarola said.

Perhaps this is why Iadarola feels the way she does about the protest that occurred on Cabrini's campus on March 26. "I think our students today are more knowledgeable about the issues. I think they're thoughtful, more discerning," Iadarola said.

"I thought that there were students that were confused. They were concerned about the war, but because of the people over there, they wanted to be supportive of the war," Iadarola said.

Monica Davey, a writer for the New York Times, comments about