Would American Students Ever Riot?

For those who haven't heard, a riot erupted in London on Wednesday driven primarily by students who are angered over tuition hikes and other recent economic measures by the British government. Although most media outlets seem to be phrasing it as a precursor for broader British protests, like a true narcissist my own thoughts turned to America. In other words, would American students ever riot over broad tuition hikes, or any government action that collectively screws 95% of them?

My gut reaction - like many of my compatriots, I imagine - is one of skepticism. Americans are more docile. Our tuition rates rise 3-4% every year and there's barely been a flinch, much less an editorial in a county gazette.

But consider this: in the late 1940s and early 50s, protests at the universities - which were run on in loco parentis principles - would have been unthinkable. And yet the late 50s, 60s, and 70s brought a wealth of protests from our youth on a wide array of grounds: racial, militaristic, sexual, even curriculum-based.

Given that our current economic climate is going to inevitably screw over a generation, after arguably screwing generation x over, and I could easily see the universities becoming a locus of social protest again. In retrospect, the students of the 50s and 60s were justified by history compared to the beliefs held and espoused by their parents and professors. There's little reason the same phenomenon won't happen with respect to economics, no matter how straight-laced, inside-the-lines the current student generation's "leaders" seem.