Rally on the Bald Spot (1979)
This item, found in the "President's Office Records, 1977 – 1986" collection in the college archive, shows a student-made flyer advertising a protest rally.
These two notes were found attached to the above flyer in "President's Office Records, 1977 – 1986" collection. They show messages left for college president Edwards regarding the planned rally.
The Simon note — through its criticism — reveals the disruptive impact of this protest. While student protesters at Carleton had little institutional sway, they had the ability to disrupt campus life. The existence of this note in the President’s Office archive shows that this disruption succeeded in making the group more visible to people who did have institutional power, such as Edwards. The reference to involving "David Appleyard," who served as Carleton’s Dean of Students at the time, also reveals a possible method of possible administrative disciplinary response to this activist utilisation of visibility (and auditability) tactics.
The Easton note reiterates the intended visibility of this method of protest. Throughout the history of student protest at Carleton, student activist groups have oscillated between attempts to convince and appease people in positions of power and attempts to pressure and antagonise them. This note, from early in the push for divestment, shows an attempt to project civility, though this tactic will be reversed at other points in the movement's history.