I made some remarks at our recent rally for higher education at MSU on April 17, 2025. Here’s the text of what I said.

intro

Afternoon, my friends.

First off, thanks to GEU, UNTF, and UTSF for organizing this rally and thanks to all y’all for being here today.

I know that some of our colleagues can’t be here, and we appreciate y’all standing up for them.

I’m Danny Caballero; I’m the Lappan-Phillips endowed chair of physics education at MSU, a professor in our Physics and Computational Science programs, and a labor organizer with UTSF.

I am also, like more than a fifth of our undergrads, a first-generation college student.

I’ve not always had a good relationship with higher ed. I went to college under-resourced. I worked full-time to pay rent, bills, and to buy food. I failed courses and lost my financial aid. Unable to pay my rent, bills, and tuition, I left school.

My experience isn’t unique; our students have the same stories. But what I’ve seen in my 12 years at MSU is community of people devoted to helping our students succeed.

Our campus thrives because of the incredible people who support it. Our wonderful academic staff ensure students have the resources and guidance they need. Undergraduate LAs and graduate TAs bring their compassion and expertise to our classrooms every day. Facilities, mechanical, food service, and custodial staff keep our buildings clean, safe, and functional. And our educators and scholars dedicate themselves to advancing students’ futures through teaching and research.

We are also have a vibrant and engaged student body who have chosen to be part of the MSU community.

the attacks

But now, we face a multimodal attack on higher education that targets MSU, our work, and students. Here’s how I see it.

When President Trump orders the dismantling of diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, I reflect on my own challenging journey to MSU.

I think about the students who share similar struggles, those who feel attacked and vulnerable, and the future students we may never meet because programs and resources are cut. I think about my colleagues whose academic freedom is being targeted and undermined.

When his administration mandates abrupt changes to grant programs, cancels entire areas of research, and withholds federal funds to force concessions, I think about the undergraduate research opportunities that allowed me to pay my bills and complete my degree.

I think about the students who conduct research with me and my colleagues, and how many of them will lose that opportunity if funding dries up. I think about how their MSU experience and futures will be diminished.

When President Trump vilifies migrants, immigrants, and our international students and scholars and ICE disappears folks to prisons in Louisiana and El Salvador, I take that personally.

I think about how unwelcome MSU must feel for folks who are not U.S. citizens. I think about the critical importance of international scholarship and the free exchange of ideas to all our work. I think about how our international students and colleagues enrich MSU.

When he directs agency heads to dismantle the operations of the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, and the Department of Education, I think about the transformative impact me and my colleagues’ NSF funded work have had on STEM education nationwide.

I think about the groundbreaking work that MSU researchers have contributed to the world and the immense talent on this campus that can continue that work. I think about the infrastructure and jobs supported by overhead return and what it would mean to lose it. I think about the staff who will be laid off. I think about the possibility of no longer being able to do my job.

When President Trump inevitably rewards his wealthy allies with tax breaks that produce deep cuts in research and higher education, I will reflect on how we got to that point and what more we could have done to prevent it.

what can we do?

But we can’t live in this space of despair, my friends.

We can find joy and pride in defending higher education.

We have so much to celebrate in our work, our community, and our shared future.

So, what can we do?

Well, you’re already doing it. You showed up today, and that matters.

Thank you for being here. This is where it begins. We need to adopt an organizer’s mindset.

When the Trump administration attacks our community, our academic freedom, our right to organize, and the labor that sustains our campus, we must respond by standing together.

We must agitate, educate, deepen our sense of community, and exercise solidarity.

Take out your phone and pull up the messages app.

Text someone from MSU that you know who is not here. Here, I’ll do it with you.

Hey Kim, I just wanted to let you know that I’m at the rally for higher education at MSU. I appreciate everything you do for me and our students. And I’m shouting you out right now in public. :winky face:

And send.

We need every member of the MSU community - including students, staff, alumni, and labor from both academic and non-academic units - to understand why standing up for higher education is essential to protect MSU.

We must advocate for our unions and union organizing efforts.

We’ve wasted enough time and money doing the opposite; MSU’s administration should recognize UTSF now. Our unions can be powerful allies in this fight, working alongside our administration to protect and strengthen MSU.

Finally, we must deepen our networks and exercise solidarity.

The Faculty Senate’s successful resolution on a Mutual Defense Pact with other Big Ten schools is a promising step forward, but we need go further.

Together, we can amplify our voices and stand stronger against these attacks.

We must not kowtow to a federal administration and a president who seem to want nothing more than to construct and control an uneducated, frightened, and divided citizenry.

To combat this, we must continue doing the work that defines us.

It’s challenging right now, but our students deserve a community that remains committed their success and their future.

That means we keep teaching, keep researching, and keep showing up—for them, for each other, and for the future of MSU.

We can move forward together, my friends.

Go Green!