Dozens of students and faculty had their photos taken with cutouts of President Trump and Vice President Pence on Friday during the inauguration. Clemson student organization WeRoar hosted the “Pictures with the Prez” event on Library Bridge as a way for students and faculty to express their views about the new President.
“Our organization has noticed a trend of censorship in universities in relation to pro-Donald Trump events. The purpose of the event was to encourage free expression whether you were pro-Trump or anti-Trump,” said Jack Timmerman, a junior political science major and member of WeRoar. “We had a lot of people that showed up who wanted to wear the ‘Make America Great Again’ hat and flag glasses while giving the President and Vice President a thumbs-up, but we also had a lot of people who agreed to take pictures doing face-palms, choking the cutouts, or flipping the bird all harmless ways of expression that we invited.”
“We had one person who apparently made a b-line from the printers in the library to our stand with posters of how they felt about the new president. I didn’t only encourage it, but I offered to hold one of the posters for a picture, which made for one of my favorite pictures from that day. What then followed was a polite discussion about why I’m hopeful for the next four years, why she’s worried, and whether or not the country made the right choice. We came to some agreements and disagreements, but overall, we came to a conclusion that it’s our job to hold President Trump accountable in the future, and to support one another.”
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