TAMU's Human Wall

[Pima]

I just wanted to say that what a class act these students are at Texas A & M
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/06/texas-am-students_n_1653002.html

I am sure the Tisdale family felt honored and loved that these kids who probably never met the man, made sure that nothing would occur to bring about more pain on an already painful day.

Many people say that you are always part of the family even when you leave, TAMU students proved that on Thursday.

In the days after the soldier's death, word spread that Westboro Baptist Church members were planning to protest Tisdale's funeral.

Described as a "homophobic and anti-Semitic hate group" by the Anti-Defamation League, Westboro Baptist Church regularly stages protests around the country.

According to KBTX.com, the group, which is based in Kansas, frequently targets military funerals because of "a belief that God punishes soldiers because of America's tolerance of gays."


When Ryan Slezia, a former Texas A&M student, heard of the group's plans, he hatched a plot to foil their efforts.

"In response to their signs of hate, we will wear maroon. In response to their mob anger, we will form a line, arm in arm. This is a silent vigil. A manifestation of our solidarity," he wrote on Facebook, inviting others to join him in a peaceful protest.

On Thursday, as Tisdale's funeral was held at the Central Baptist Church in College Station, Tex., hundreds of students and alumni responded to Slezia's invation, linking arms to create a human barricade surrounding the church's entrance.

Most wore maroon -- A&M's school color. One participant tweeted that over 650 people showed up, creating a formidable "maroon wall."

“We are standing here quietly. We are here for the family,” Lilly McAlister, a Texas A&M student, told KBTX.com. "We are positioned with our backs to them. Everyone has been told there's no chanting, no singing, there's no yelling anything back."

The hundreds gathered were prepared for a potentially aggressive confrontation, but the protestors from Westboro Baptist Church never showed up.

 

[CadetMom777]

You hit the nail on the head, Pima! We truly do feel like an extended family and that is sometimes hard to explain to those who did not attend A&M. This event was a very good illustration of the spirit we feel for our school and each other. Thank you for sharing that!

 

[Lawman32RPD]

CadetMom777 is right. Neither I nor my wife are Aggies but there was/is something about the school that spoke to our daughter, now a sophomore (Pisshead) in the Corps. Clearly, there is something in the air or water there, it is truly an 'art that spoke to her'.

 

[Packer]

 

[Pima]

As a parent it is hard to leave your child at any college for the 1st time, but to me it is easier when you can physically see that you are not leaving them, you are handing them over to their new family.

Many of you know our DD attends VT(not ROTC), but just the same, I know she would be on that line to show support for her ROTC friends that lost a member of their military family and an alumni. We all know VT has had some hard yrs.

I think that is also what is great about these schools. It introduces students at an age where they see the military differently, because this kid that sat next to you in class all semester, wearing shorts, polos and rainbows like any other kid, became your friend, and not a war monger that you might have created in your mind because of what you heard on the news. Their illusion of what the military is like, and their reality are 2 different things.

In such sorrow, it gives such great hope.