Syracuse University students have been demonstrably upset over their school's choice of deep-pocketed alum and JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon as this year's commencement speaker. And after failing to convince the university's administration to rescind Dimon's invitation, some students have devised a new plan to exhibit their distaste: they will be going robeless at Sunday's graduation ceremonies.
The Daily Orange reports:
Mariel Fiedler will attend commencement. She will wear her cap and gown. She will walk across the stage. She will revel in the fact that four years of hard work has paid off.And when JPMorgan Chase & Co. Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon gets on stage to give his commencement address, she won't say a word in protest. Instead, she'll protest his presence in a silent way -- by taking off her robe.
"I'll sit there and listen to him, but I won't be wearing my robe when that happens," Fiedler said.
According to the Orange, the act is the students' "quiet yet powerful way to show their discontent."
The movement against Dimon's commencement speech inspired considerable action on campus. Students formed a coalition called "Take Back Commencement" and held dance party-protests to show their dissatisfaction. Syracuse rapper Delirium even penned a song on the controversy:
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