I first met Giuseppe fall quarter of my freshman year at DePaul. He was a person to be noticed, with wild, untamed curls, and a distinct, friendly voice that greeted fellow comrades all over campus. But it was not due to his unique demeanor that officially allowed me the pleasure of his acquaintance; I was lucky enough to have him as the Teacher’s Assistant in my Explore Chicago course, aptly named “The Chicago Left.” On the first day of class we participated in an activity that exemplified the ease at which we stereotype others; in it, we went around the class and made assumptions about our peers. When it was Giuseppe’s turn, students were eager to pigeon-hole him as a “pot-head”, a guy who “used to listen to punk rock, but now prefers folk”, “doesn’t shower”, etc. (none of which were true). What no one guessed, but what ultimately manifested into a reality for me was that Giuseppe was “a person who would change my life forever.”
With every story Giuseppe told, with every conviction he articulated, I became more and more inspired. He encouraged all of the students to engage themselves in the world around them, and even if our opinions differed from his, he insisted that everyone be exposed to the truth, something of which we are often robbed by our media and our government. He got the class to picket outside the Congress Hotel, to understand first-hand the importance of labor rights; we visited a health clinic and a community center in Humboldt Park, which exposed many of us to the truth of gentrification for the first time in our sheltered-suburb-living lives; he showed us videos that forced us to think; he shared experiences that helped us to understand. Every day he was promoting an event for some student organization; he was seemingly involved in EVERYTHING on campus, including Student Government. It is because of Giuseppe, that I became involved with DePaul Students Against the War, an organization that has helped me grow more than any other experience or class since I moved to Chicago.
Yes, I could continue to list the ways that Giuseppe was active in on-campus organizations, the way he approached his classes as a way to challenge others and challenge himself, but what is most important to me about his character is not something that can be easily boasted on a resume. I’m referring to Giuseppe’s sincere concern and compassion for his fellow human being. He made it entirely clear that if anyone in the class ever had any problem, that he would be there for them. Students went to him with everything from concerning scheduling difficulties, to self-mutilation addictions, to being contracted with HIV. The final example was brought to him by one of my best friends after my urging to do so. Peter* was a kind, funny, warm human being, who unfortunately dealt with a long history of substance-abuse, and came from the extreme of a “screwed-up home life.” When he found out that his symptoms of fatigue, nausea, and sores were not due to mono, but to HIV, I was the person he came to first. At 18 years old, I had no idea how to handle staying up all night with him to make sure he didn’t try to kill himself, or what exactly to tell him when he would state flatly: “I am completely hopeless.”
Fortunately, I remembered what Giuseppe had said about offering his help for anything, and I knew that Giuseppe would provide the hope that Peter needed. Peter, also a member of The Chicago Left class, quickly agreed to share his news with Giuseppe, and from that point on, neither of us were alone. From the day he found out ‘til the day Peter went back to his home in Boston, Giuseppe did everything in his power to help him find doctors, talk to administrators at DePaul, and counsel him out of suicide. And even when Peter was back in Boston, Giuseppe’s concern didn’t wane.
I can honestly say I don’t know what I would have done without him; and neither does Peter.
So, the question is, why is a man who literally saved the life of a fellow DePaul student now banned from the campus? It really comes down to Giuseppe's love of solidarity. Even though his 3 year scholarship had expired, Giuseppe, with the invitation and permission of many, many students and student groups, still wanted to help participate in campus activism. Because of that, it seemed perfectly natural that he would be at the annual campus involvement fair, held this past year on September 11th. However, when spotted sitting at the Student Government table with fellow friend and DSAW member Cyndi Torres, SGA President Wes Thompson requested to Student Life that Giuseppe be removed from the fair.
(The following information was taken from an article posted by the Hands Off Giuseppe group): Giuseppe wished to just move to another table, and he was allowed to do so. After confronting Thompson on the unprovoked action, Thompson had Giuseppe removed from the Student Center building with a demand that he never again be allowed to return. Administrators explain that Giuseppe, since no longer a student, has no rights that DePaul has to respect.
For the next three weeks, Giuseppe never entered the Student Center, but continued to come to campus to investigate returning to school, go to group meetings, and attend campus events, all at the invitation of current students. He had no run-ins with Public Safety, Wes Thompson, Administrators or anyone else during this time. On the evening of October 2nd, he waited outside the Student Center for several friends to come out who were in a meeting. They came out and the group prepared to leave campus, when two Public Safety officers surrounded Giuseppe, asked for his legal name and identification, handcuffed him without warning and detained him in the Public Safety office.
Chicago Police were called, though when they arrived they argued with Public Safety officer Kevin O'Connor that this was an illegitimate arrest. When O'Connor persisted, they took him under arrest with trespassing charges against him. O'Connor told Giuseppe "You're not wanted here. Nobody wants you here." Giuseppe was then notified that he was banned from the entire campus, after he had already been arrested.
The administration and Public Safety had refused to give up reports of the incident that Giuseppe needed for trial, until his lawyer finally received them two months later. They continue to refuse to give him the policies and procedures for banning people from campus, and Giuseppe's friends have reason to believe that they did not obey campus policy. The court case was over the trespassing charge, but after three months and five court dates DePaul realized that it could not win in a trial and offered a plea-bargain that Giuseppe simply be banned from campus for one more year. Several supporters came to his final court date in the beginning of the quarter, although four conservative enemies of his did as well, including a student in the Law School and two members of an ultra-right wing fascist group. DePaul can still rescind this ban, but it won’t without pressure from students, staff, faculty, and other alumni. Show Giuseppe that he is not alone, and show DePaul that there are plenty of us who still want him here.
*Name has been changed.