This consultation is aimed toward helping administrators to anticipate and be prepared for the conflict in the Middle East (and other forms of sectarian violence, conflict, and strife) to come to campus. TNG experts will help you to help your community manage risks related to outside agitators, address demands related to BDS, setting effective boundaries and guardrails, and techniques that help to manage conflicts without violence, escalation, or property damage. In addition to addressing strategic protest-related risk, TNG’s facilitators will drive an exploration of more than 40 thoughtful, clever, and innovative approaches being taken by other campuses around the country in response to protests and conflict. We’ll explore each, discussing merit and demerits, and whether they could help your campus proactively to prevent or defuse conflicts related to speech, protest, and political activism. Various formats are offered for this consultation, including workshops, policy work, and training.
Attendees will learn to:
- Evaluate the reasons both for and against institutional neutrality positions
- Assess various policy and protocol approaches to the prevention of violent and disruptive protests.
- Consider the PR, donor, legal, state legislative, and federal Congressional pressures while also not appearing to take sides, and accepting that the hostile environment created for one group is likely the result of the free speech of another group.
- Consider training organizers on policy and the boundaries of what can be said/done within the policy, and what kinds of conduct cross the line.
- Explore the challenges of policy enforcement from a prevention perspective – do disruptive protestors face real consequences or slaps on the wrist.