The Partisan received the following statement by Denton Student Union (DSU), a chapter of the Revolutionary Student Union. On October 16, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton published a letter naming DSU-RSU and the American Iron Front as promoters of “left-wing violence” and launched a campaign against them and other leftist organizations at the University of North Texas. The Partisan categorically rejects this attempt at criminalizing and repressing progressive and democratic organizations of the masses.
There is a storied history of political struggle here in Denton. In these times of the decaying American empire, we at DSU are choosing to pick up the mantle and fight against the increased level of fascism in our society. Our goal as a mass organization has always, and will continue to be that of building local solidarity and supporting local communities.
In a recent letter to the president of UNT, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton explicitly named our organization as one promoting “violent radical leftist rhetoric.” This is patently untrue, and is a transparent attempt at intimidation by a deeply unpopular Attorney General who wants to bolster his wavering senate campaign. Denton Student Union is a popular mass organization, and not an armed group. We do not engage in armed or violent struggle, even in the face of a state apparatus that actively inflicts violence on the unhoused, working class, queer, and other oppressed groups. Our role as a student organization is one that will not capitulate to the angry cries of petulant fascists. Our goal as an organization has, and will continue to be, that of organizing for workers and students in our community.
This refusal to capitulate is why they have chosen to target us. Our work in the local community—building solidarity, feeding the homeless, and connecting with those around us—is antithetical to the cruel, ruthless, and hyper-individualistic worldview which drives Paxton and his cronies. The recent letter to UNT President Keller makes that fact deeply apparent.
We at DSU also want to acknowledge that though we may be among the first targeted, we will not be the last. The state intends to continue using tools of intimidation against any popular movements or groups opposing their goal to silence dissent, and it will not stop there. On a national level, people are already being targeted, and we know that the state of Texas often serves as a test tube for fascist policies before they are expanded nation-wide. We will continue to stand in opposition to all repression of mass activism.
Our actions as an organization are explicitly protected by the First Amendment, and no amount of chest-puffing by the Texas Attorney General can change that reality. We will continue our work as an organization, and we will continue to serve as a bulwark against the fear, isolation, and atomization which the ruling class and their guard dogs seek to impose upon us and our communities.
Dare to struggle, dare to win.
Denton Student Union
