Around 200 Stanford students walk out as Google CEO takes stage

https://www.sfgate.com/tech/article/sundar-pichai-stanford-commencement-22304888.php

by pera • 1 month ago

139 32 1 month ago

Dupe of https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48533756

This is an effective form of protest. It causes someone who is clearly courting public affection to see they won't get it. It doesn't interrupt the speech for others who want to hear. But it's also not going to be missed by anyone at the assembly. Moreover, it communicates to the administration–who are also courting donations and prestige–that this gets more difficult when there is a massive gap on an issue students care about between them and leadership.

My only gripe is the lack of a clear ask. But perfect is the enemy of good.

asdfasgasdgasdg4• 1 month ago

Is it? I have to assume that Pichai was informed beforehand that there would be a walkout. Around 10% if the class walking out is not that big of a deal, especially considering that ten percent was probably not likely to seek gainful employment with Pichai’s companies anyway.

Economically, the BDS movement is making demands of so many companies that there’s hardly a large firm or other organization in the country they don’t have a problem with. But if you are saying you’re going to boycott everyone, it means you’re not really boycotting anyone.

EA-31673• 1 month ago

That assumes that the real purpose of these movements is to achieve their stated goals, rather than as a social activity for people of a certain mindset. If you look at it more like a church outing it makes a lot more sense, albeit the church is really messed up.

SpicyLemonZest• 1 month ago

As the article mentions, this is the third consecutive year that students have led a walkout for the same cause. I don’t think anyone’s obligated to sit in on a speech they’d prefer to skip, but it’s not clear that there’s anything being accomplished here other than a new tradition that pro-Palestine students leave commencement early. They’re not making any new demands because the administration flatly refused the 2024 ones.

JumpCrisscross8• 1 month ago

it’s not clear that there’s anything being accomplished here other than a new tradition that pro-Palestine students leave commencement early

It keeps it in the news cycle. Though it was genuinely unclear to me if this was mostly a pro-Palestine thing or folks pissy about AI and the Epstein class’s public corruption.

t0bia_s• 1 month ago

It's more like happening. Effective would be to abandon using services of company that I don't agree with. Which most of protesters probably don't. It's like going by diesel car to protest against oil production.

M95D2• 1 month ago

This is an effective form of protest.

No, it wasn't. I don't think 200 students is a significant proportion of audience. (BTW, bad reporting for not giving a % estimate.) This is a gross lack of solidarity. If this was to happen in Europe 50 years ago, 90% of students would walk out.

It causes someone who is clearly courting public affection to see they won't get it.

It didn't even make him feel bad. (BTW, bad reporting again for not saying how many people applauded him at the end.)

It doesn't interrupt the speech for others who want to hear.

Oh, yes they did. They blew whistles. Read the article.

Moreover, it communicates to the administration–who are also courting donations and prestige–that this gets more difficult when there is a massive gap on an issue students care about between them and leadership.

Apparently they cared about Palestine. I get it that Google supported Israel, but what does the administration has to do with any of it?

w29UiIm2Xz• 1 month ago

The upper middle class' opinions and reflections on business seem to be shifting in this environment. It seems less mutually beneficial than it used to be.

rvnx3• 1 month ago

Considering the price of Stanford, this is more bourgeoisie than middle class

JumpCrisscross8• 1 month ago

this is more bourgeoisie than middle class

The bourgeoisie are literally the middle class [1].

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bourgeoisie

orochimaaru• 1 month ago

What I was about to say. I’m pretty sure most of the students walking out have a trust fund way more than what I have as savings.

cowanon77• 1 month ago

A lot of upper middle class people recognize that AI is a direct assault on their livelihood. The very jobs that AI threatens to disrupt are the bread and butter of the upper middle class.

JumpCrisscross8• 1 month ago

"The median family income of a student from Stanford is $167,500" [1]. Not poor. But not trust-fund rich.

[1] https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/projects/college-mobilit...:

josefritzishere• 1 month ago

Google has been doing a lot of evil lately.

temp88302• 1 month ago

Not sure why this is downvoted. Eric Schmidt has his own AI killer drone factory. That's pretty evil.

quaddoggy• 1 month ago

Safespacemaxxing. Never lose your snowflakery Gen Z.

temp88302• 1 month ago

So, gone from ignoring to making fun of them? That would mean they are on their way to winning.

M95D2• 1 month ago

IMHO, they (the students) should have walked out in protest of Android lockdown, AI, google ads, enshittfication, spying, profiling, and 100 other reasons the Google CEO is directly more responsible than having Israel as a client. I'm not saying protesting what Israel did and does in Palestine isn't a valid reason, but... they're so ignorant of all the rest of bad things Google does, things that affects them directly.

Around 200 Stanford students walk out as Google CEO takes stage

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