Sam Spearing
Sam Spearing
Leaders
Becca Tasker, a junior majoring in anthropology, first started researching civil rights in middle school.
So on a chilly Wednesday night in March, Tasker taught four students gathered in room 227 of the Cathedral of Learning about civil rights and liberties when protesting. The event, called “Know Your Rights!” was part of a weekly meeting for Pitt Progressives, a new Pitt club focused on getting left-leaning students on campus engaged in the community.
Tasker, the social media coordinator for Pitt Progressives, covered the legal limits for American protesters, photographers and detainees. She instructed her audience on exercising their First, Fourth and Fifth Amendment rights without going too far and risking arrest or injury at the hands of the police.
Sam Spearing, a junior political science major and Pitt Progressives business manager, said that knowing your rights is especially important for young people who are fresh to the political scene. Spearing referred to nationwide protests that broke out after Trump’s controversial executive order banning travel between the United States and seven countries with majority Muslim populations.
Jeff Migliozzi, a junior marketing major and president of Pitt Progressives, said the group grew out of Students for Bernie, an organization dedicated to supporting Bernie Sanders’ efforts for the Democratic bid during the 2016 election. Although Students for Bernie was focused on the primary election and most of its group members did not join Pitt Progressives, it officially became a student group three months after the 2016 election.[1]
"Wholesome Meme Stash"
Members of the Democratic Socialists of America Wholesome Meme Stash closed Facebook group, accessed November 14, 2017 included Sam Spearing.[2]